Archive of Our Own

Chapter Text

Two hundred years ago

In a dark room filled with deafening silence, a king stood in front of a mirror that viewed his kingdom made out of every element that defined darkness: a blood-red sky made of molten lava, houses made of dark grey concrete, and dead plants littering the roads. This was the perfect example of hell, the paradise of eternal damnation.

The peaceful, eerie silence broke when someone barged through his door. The only person who dared disturb the king was his brother, Hoseok. "Yoongi, we have a new resident." His usually composed voice carried a hint of nervousness that Yoongi initially decided to ignore.

"Did Marilyn Monroe die already?" Yoongi exclaimed with a hand over his chest as Hoseok looked unimpressed at the King of Hell.

"No-"

"Another king demanding wine? How shocking!" He chuckled at his sarcasm. They did not call him the God of mischief for no reason.

"No..." He looked down, and collected his thoughts before breaking the news that clawed at his conscience. "We have a new fallen." In an instant, Yoongi's whole demeanour shifted from lighthearted to serious.

They haven't had a fallen angel in centuries after the angelic rules became more lenient and liberal, so it did come as a shock. However, it did not explain why Hoseok looked so nervous. "Okay... But that's not a bad thing? Maybe they tickled the new God the wrong way, and in that case, hell would be a more comfortable place for them to rule and tor-"

"It's Taeyeon." Taeyeon, the angel of kindness and motherhood. She's the last person who should've ever landed in hell.

Yoongi's eyes widened in shock and disbelief, and he kept wondering what the archangel could've done to receive this fate. "That doesn't make sense."

"I don't know what happened, but they need you now. It's a lot more complicated, and I don't have time to explain." Before Yoongi could ask further questions, Hoseok snapped his finger, and the room shifted to a cold, dark cellar.

In the middle of it was a woman with luxurious long black hair and golden skin clutching her stomach as sobs wracked through her body. At their arrival, she whipped her head towards the brothers, and her big brown eyes looked at them pleadingly. Even with her face pale and eyes full of tears, she was beautiful.

"You have to save him..." She choked through her tears. That's when he noticed a stream of red running down her thighs and her noticeable belly bump. Yoongi shuddered when he realized that the angel was pregnant. Angels aren't supposed to bleed when they fall. It was the child she was carrying and currently losing because of the impact her body took when she was forced down through the dimensions. What could've Taeyeon possibly done to endure such brutal punishment? "Please, Yoongi, he's all I have. You must heal him."

Before Yoongi was banished from Silver City, he was the angel of healing and creation. That is how he created so many demons to keep him company as he ruled over wretched souls from Earth. However, his magic was blackened and impure after his fall, and everything he touched was dirty. "If I save him, he will never be able to go to heaven like other purebred angels. The child would be an evil born stuck in hell where he will only know torture and misery for the rest of eternity." Yoongi said as he crouched down in front of the woman. He gave the crying woman the option to back out. To choose the death of her child over the inevitable darkness that would loom over him forever. Any mother would hope their child survived to see heaven instead of hell.

She calmed her breathing momentarily and swallowed her tears before meeting Yoongi's eyes with renowned passion. The passion for motherhood, Yoongi concluded. She said without hesitation, "Hell is safer for him." That's when Yoongi realized. Taeyeon wasn't the fallen angel but a sacrificial lamb. It was the child.

.˳·˖✶𓆩𓁺𓆪✶˖·˳.༄

"The child survived, your Grace." A nervous voice came from behind the crystal throne, overlooking the beautiful city in the sky.

"How so?" A powerful voice resonated throughout the room. It was devoid of emotions, which shook the core of the man standing further. The owner of the voice turned around to eye the angel.

"The King of Hell saved him." He said while looking down at the floor.

The man on the throne clicked his tongue while looking out of the glass. "Ahhh, my old friend Yoongi is still such a softie for the weak and pathetic." Suddenly, a loud, chilling laugh rings throughout the silent room as the king turns around to face the angel. "Then we have nothing to be worried about. A child of the devil can never set foot in heaven. Either way, the prophecy no longer stands." He said with a smug expression on his face. His body buzzed with relief for the first time after years of anxiety crawling over him ever since the piece of paper was delivered to him from the relic.

The soldier broke the pleasant silence with another question, "About Taeyeon's fall... What do we tell Minho and Jihoon?"

God sighed and pondered for a few seconds. How do you explain the fall of the angel of kindness? No one will believe she got prosecuted for doing something cruel. "Tell them she aided demons with her power. Tell them that she visited hell to meet Yoongi, and they got close, so she involved herself with the affairs of the dark realm. They were friends when he was in heaven, so it will not be surprising. Angel of motherhood and kindness fell for showing kindness to the wrong side of the war." It was the perfect reason to cover up the real cause, and he mentally patted himself on the back. There were no wars with hell, but the silver city would still look down at the wretchedness of hell. It would still break the hearts of her husband and brother. Still, it is justifiable enough to maintain superiority over the other angels.

"I shall pass along the message, but your Grace, Jihoon, is unpredictable. What if-"

"Just do as I say and stop giving me a headache. It is a good enough reason for those two not to question my judgement, and even if they do, nothing can be done about it because the other angels would support their king. You are dismissed." The angel had no other choice but to follow his master.

They were in denial when he told Taeyeon's husband and brother the news. They were persistent in asking for proof of those accusations, but the community of angels eventually accepted it. God's words were the truth to them; if they acted against it, there would be consequences. They are so blinded by the ideology of superiority, fear and submissiveness towards the one who possesses the throne that they forget that the current God is an archangel and not their creator. That is why Jihoon made the reckless decision of breaking the rules and sneaking into hell.

He leaves at the dead of night through the secret passage he uses to meet his friend, Seokjin, who resides in the water. The water was a neutral ground and he knew there was a path for him there and hoped that he could go to hell undetected. 

He successfully made his way inside the dark, cold red land that resembled the inside of a dormant volcano. As he looked around, trying to figure out his next move, he heard a swooshing sound surrounding him. He immediately found himself in a cell of rotten stones and the nasty stench of blood. As the angel of war, he was unfazed. He predicted this would happen since one of the devils possessed the power of teleportation. He did not have to wait long before the devil emerged from the shadow. "Jung Hoseok." He slightly bowed his head in front of the hell prince.

"Kim Jihoon. Quite a surprise to see you here, especially considering you're not fallen." Hoseok said with a tight smile as he bore holes into the angel's skull.

Jihoon maintained Hoseok's gaze and said authoritatively, "I'm here to see my sister."

Hoseok raised his eyebrows before hardening his gaze. "I'm afraid I can't follow that request."

He should have known it would be a challenge. He took a deep breath and tried again. "Listen, I know my sister did not do what she was accused of doing. I know there is a different reason, and I want to find out the truth to gather enough evidence to overthrow Dongwoo."

Hoseok decided to laugh this time, angering him further. "Your rash, unpredictable and reckless decisions are why you were not chosen, Jihoon. You always act out of impulse instead of critical thinking." Jihoon feels red as the demon sits before him with fire in his eyes. The worst thing is that Hoseok was right. Jihoon was made to fight. His tactics were suited for battlefields, not politics. "Those people treat him like God. Evidence is not enough to take him down. It will be ignored the minute he denies the accusations and twists it to make it look like he is doing it for the greater good. If you want to take him down, kill him and get executed as a traitor."

Jihoon scoffed at Hoseok, even though he knew Hoseok made the correct points. He was reckless, but he was always good at absorbing advice and knowledge from others. "So I should just be okay with my sister getting banished to hell?"

"Hell has been treating her very well. Granted, we don't have blue skies, constellations and silver houses." Hoseok crossed his arms over his chest as he leaned back on his chair.

"For fuck sake, Hoseok! I don't care how well she has been doing here. I miss my sister! She got separated from her family by force, and I want to see her, and I know she wants to see me, too." Hoseok's gaze flickered with emotions when he witnessed Jihoon's outburst. Jihoon calmed down before adding calmly, "I need to let her know that Minho and I stand by her."

That's how he found himself in the middle of another swooshing wind before his feet hit a more pleasant room where his sister was. His first reaction upon seeing his sister was a look of pure shock and disbelief. When he entered hell and saw his sister, he was not expecting to see a charcoal-eyed and raven-haired baby attached to her hips. It had been almost two years since he last saw her, and the baby looked like he was a year old. Taeyeon mirrored his expression as tears started to fall from her eyes. Despite so many questions whirling in his head, his first instinct was to hug his sister.

"Taeyeon, I missed you so much..."

"I missed you too. I never thought I would see you again, " she said as tears started to stream down her face. “But brother, you shouldn't be here. You'll be banished if they find out." Taeyeon looked at him with fearful eyes.

Jihoon took her trembling hands and looked at her beautiful, teary eyes. "I know, but I could not stop myself. I just wanted you to know that Minho and I never once believed Dongwoo. We know there is another reason why you got banished. I promise we will get rid of him."

Taeyeon was shaking her head as her brother spoke. "You should not. It is too dangerous. All I want is for you two to live a peaceful, happy life. That is why I sacrificed myself to keep everyone I love safe." As soon as she said that, her eyes moved to the child in her arms.

Jihoon followed her gaze and grew even more confused. "What do you mean you sacrificed yourself? Who is this child?"

Before Taeyeon could answer, someone else beat it. "That's her son." Yoongi's resonating voice came from the entrance of the room. Hoseok had informed Yoongi about their recent guest, and the king had to be present before more trouble fell on his kingdom.

Jihoon's eyes grew even wider at the news. "You were pregnant?" Taeyeon nodded her head while looking down.

Yoongi decided to continue when words failed to leave her. "There is a prophecy that the child of Minho and Taeyeon would be the new ruler of heaven. As soon as she conceived, Taeyeon was given the choice to abort the baby secretly or get banished to hell. She chose the latter." That was a lot of information for Jihoon, who looked like a fish out of water. 

Yoongi found the scene of the angel of war quite amusing, but he did not comment out of respect for Taeyeon. "And the son in question is this menace that wouldn't stop crying at night, since the day he exited her vagina," Yoongi spoke in his loud aloof voice and clasped his hands together. "If that answers your questions, I suggest you flutter your wings and leave my realm before Heaven starts pouring in here." There was a long, uncomfortable silence after that as Jihoon processed the information.

He had even more questions now, but Yoongi and Taeyeon were right. He had to leave soon before they noticed his absence. "I am going, but I will be back shortly. I need to tell Minho-"

"No! Please don't!" Taeyeon's eyes were begging him not to. "Having one of you making rash decisions is dangerous enough. If he knows, he will do something stupid. It would be best if you kept this a secret and did not come back for all of our safety. That's my last request to you, brother." Jihoon could not stop his eyes from stinging. He clenched his hand in a fist to keep himself in control.

“What safety are you talking about when you and my nephew are stuck here? Dongwoo would pay for this.” 

“He will, but not now. Go back and find out if the prophecy is burnt or not. If it's still there, you must remain in heaven to make sure you don't compromise the pathway to Hell for him to send his men down to kill him. You must also help Minho gain the favour of other angels so that they can eventually see the crimes of Dongwoo and support us when the time comes.” Her eyes did not well with tears but a vision Yoongi did not know she had. He thought Taeyeon only wanted to protect her child and live in hell. But there was vengeance in her eyes too.

Jihoon sighed in defeat. "What did the prophecy say exactly?"

"After the twentieth revolution of the star Delta Capricorni around the city of Paradise, a new star will shine from the love of justice and kindness. The rightful king of the Silver City. With pure love encircling his heart and bleeding inside his weapon, he shall restore the balance of realms and conquer through the corrupt rusty pillars caging eternal power." Taeyeon remembered every word of the text and will always remember them when the day arrives.

Hearing those powerful words of the universe, Jihoon felt a chill run down his spine. He dropped his gaze to his nephew, who looked at him with big grey eyes and fluffing his adorable chubby cheeks. This tiny bundle would be their future. He would make sure of it. "What's the name of our salvation?" he asked gently. His hands were inching forward hesitantly to cup the baby boy's cheek.

Yoongi walked closer to the siblings and the child, and with an authoritative voice, he said, "Kim Taehyung."

.˳·˖✶𓆩𓁺𓆪✶˖·˳.༄

Present day

Jungkook was forced to wake up from his slumber after the assault of the glaring sunlight pouring out of his window. He cursed himself for not drawing the curtains after his daily stargazing session and begrudgingly got himself off his bed. He approached his window that overlooked his massive beloved garden, the subject of countless paintings the young prince drew. The weather seemed pleasant, but unfortunately, he would be too preoccupied to pay a visit.

A heavy anxiety settled in his stomach at the thought of today's meeting. More than the meeting itself, it was the thought of coming face to face with the man who always sported a look of disapproval on his face. He was always eager to challenge Jungkook's right to the throne by bringing his 'un-kingly' attitudes into light. 

Even though he knew his mother loved him dearly and would not be swayed, he still wanted to prove himself as the rightful heir to the most powerful throne of men. He wonders what kind of dilemma his stepfather would impose on him in the upcoming council meeting.

While looking at his garden, a speck of purple in the sky caught his eyes, growing in size as it approached. Upon seeing his soul protector flying towards the castle, a smile formed at the corner of his lips. His beautiful dragon, Amethyst. The top of her body until her long pin tail and both legs took the shade of midnight purple, while her belly took a softer periwinkle shade. Her majestic wings made her a unique type of beauty due to the gradient of deep midnight purple fading into the shadow of lilac, with the outer part of her wings touching the tint of orchid. In the night sky, her wings create the illusion of the prettiest purple glitter as she flies through the wind. Jungkook's favourite part of his dragon was her protruding spikes that resembled the Amethyst stone she was named after. She had two long ends on both sides of her head, which looked like horns, and smaller ones followed her tail.

Amethyst finally lands in the training yard beyond his garden, with her head peeking over the tall trees to look at Jungkook. She grew so big that she could see the young prince over the hills and trees separating the castle and the enormous training space needed for handling dragons. Jungkook took that as a cue to take a shower and get ready to train with his uncle, General Kim Namjoon, until the time of the meeting.

.˳·˖✶𓆩𓁺𓆪✶˖·˳.༄

"Another Scarlet Shadow body has been found, your Grace." With a conflicted emotion, the demon stood before Yoongi and Hoseok with his hands behind his back. This was the second one found dead in a week. The evil souls roaming the Earth increased, and the number of Scarlet Shadows decreased alarmingly. Even though the problem has been persistent for centuries, the rate increased exponentially with no insight into the cause and solution. It's not like they weren't trying to get it under control, but every attempt failed.

Scarlet Shadows were half-demon and half-soul entities created by Yoongi, with the ability to roam with the living, the void of death on Earth and the realm of hell. They are blessed with the blade of the night to bring the damned souls to hell after their death. The problem started when souls found a way to the void of death from hell, and possessed other people with the same evil energy as them. The more they stayed in the body, the more they killed and the stronger they became. Their first victims usually are the Scarlet Shadows when they attempt to fulfill their duty. The Scarlet Shadows seize to exist like every other demon once killed. Their souls disintegrate.

Yoongi stood from his desk and looked at his brother. "Hoseok, send out a notice to all remaining Scarlet Shadows to meet with us today. Give me a list of souls who are morally improving and have been good residents of hell." He needed to create more highly trained Scarlet Shadows to get the souls back to hell.

"I can, but you know that will take too long. We do not have enough time before unsalvagable destructions are caused." Hoseok said with his usual calm yet concerned demeanour.

Yoongi sighed loudly while running his hand through his head. "Then what do you suggest we do?"

Before Hoseok could reply, another demon arrived at the gate. "Your Majesty, I was asked by Prince Taehyung to tell you that he went to Earth to hunt for evil souls and not to tell his mother."

For the first time, Hoseok's face broke into a room-brightening smile at the mention of the young prince, and the two demons were shocked until they faced a fuming King right beside him. "That little brat..." He muttered under his breath.

"We should follow what he is doing?" Hoseok said.

"Pardon?"

"The plan I had was that we should get involved. The fallen and the demons. We possess powers and skills that are more than sufficient to keep them under control. In the meantime, the Scarlet Shadows can finish their training." Yoongi sported a sour expression but did not interrupt him, so he continued. "I know we have this stigma against travelling between the realms and interfering with the order, but nothing about souls possessing humans is natural." After Hoseok was done, Yoongi still looked conflicted with the idea.

The last time he went to Earth, he gave the woman he loved two dragons to protect herself. Those dragons conquered the entire world, made more of those beasts roam the land, and completely changed the original scheme of God and the balance of nature. All three realms felt the shift in energy and the state of unrest until they became the new norm. Many proposed that the dragons be executed, but many more argued against it since the dragons only obeyed the bloodline of Eve. 

They were proven to be highly empathic and carried pure love for their riders. They had more emotional intelligence than humans, so killing them would be brutal. Many were shocked at how Min Yoongi created something with so much devotion. He thinks it's because he projected his feelings for Eve into those majestic beasts and used obsidian nebula dust. "I'll think about it, Hoseok. First, arrange the meeting and give me the list."

.˳·˖✶𓆩𓁺𓆪✶˖·˳.༄

As expected, the Jeon meeting did not go well for the crowned prince. When he saw his stepfather's face sporting a taunting smirk, he knew that man was up to no good. And he was right.

"I do not wish to be married to a stranger," Jungkook said sternly, glaring at the man he had desperately tried to gain the favour of when he was a child. At that time, he thought Seo Hyuk was his biological father, but he realized the truth when he turned 16. He remembered feeling both relieved and depressed. He was relieved because he no longer believed he had done something wrong to be hated by his father. He was depressed because he did not know what happened to his biological father. When he timidly asked his mother, the woman's eyes clouded with tears, and words refused to come out. That reinforced his worst theory about his father's whereabouts. But he imagined his father would be proud if he saw Jungkook.

"Have you not been following anything discussed? We need allies!"

"Do we need them, or do they need us? Why do you make us sound desperate for allies against stupid rebellions? Did you forget again that we control the dragons?" Jungkook asked daringly, not once showing any sign of weakness.

"Your tendency to underestimate the threats to the thrones will lead to great consequences." His stepfather sneered. 

"Oh, I'm certainly not underestimating you here!" It was a nasty move to bring up a common assumption in the court regarding Hyuk's greed for the throne, and Jungkook reminded everyone of that whenever the older man tried to control him. Hyuk ignored his comeback. 

"The people of the rebellions are proven to possess an unnatural amount of strength. We do not know how or why, but there are great possibilities that they will be used as a weapon. Even though we might be protected against them, our subjects will not. And the use of dragons to hunt the rebels amongst our subjects would also cause mass destruction to them and turn them against us." His stepfather replied while looking at the advisors, and most of them seemed to agree with him. He looks at his mother, who is deep in her thoughts. "Forming allies will keep our potential opponents on our side and allow us to use human resources for investigations and targeted kills."

Jungkook did not want to let him win over him, and he certainly did not want to marry a woman. "Does she have a brother?" As soon as he said that, his mentor Namjoon, quiet the whole time, broke into a stifled laugh. The other council members looked like they were trying to keep a straight face.

Hyuk, however, was red with anger. "Must you take everything as a joke?"

"I'm not joking. You were the one who spread words of me sleeping with men, and now I have to marry a woman? I'll marry the crown prince instead."

"You can't-" Seo Hyuk was cut off before he could finish.

"Then I'd like to take my leave. But do not worry, father! My little brother Jungho has always been the second option, is he not? His love for women would make him happier with this arrangement. He’d finally be something more than the spare heir." He says with a smile and bows down to his mother.

"Jungkook, wait..." It was his mother that called him this time. "We have lost a lot of soldiers, and many villages were set on fire by them. We need to get the Cartha Kingdom on our side before the rebels do, so will you please think about it?" And at that, Jungkook's heart shattered. When he thought he had won against Seo Hyuk, Jungkook was proven wrong by the person he loved the most. He knew she was speaking as a queen rather than his mother, but he felt suffocated. So he bowed formally to everyone in the room without meeting Hyuk's eyes and ran out of the council mansion into the nearby forest.

Jungkook knew his way around the forest quite well due to the number of times he would go to the beautiful lake at the end of the forest, and gaze up at the twinkling stars. Amethyst was often nearby, but he wanted to be alone with himself. It wouldn't be the first time.

However, once he was deep inside the forest, halfway through the lake, Jungkook felt an energy shift. It felt much more relaxed than before, causing the hair on his arms to stand up, and he felt like something sinister was following him. As he slowed down his pace, he felt the dark energy move closer to him, almost like it was looming and breathing right next to him. Jungkook tried to calm himself down and grabbed his knife. He swiftly turned around to face his stalker and held the knife to his throat. However, as soon as he saw the thing, he immediately froze, and the real fear settled in his stomach.

What was standing before him was not a human but a grotesque shell of what used to be his body. His jaw was detached from his face, hanging by a few rotten tissues; his eyes were a deep black, and his skin looked decomposed. He tried maintaining his composure and hoped his fear and anxiety had reached Amethyst.

The monster started to move its jaws, and Jungkook had to stop himself from gagging at the wretched smell of decomposing flesh. It had no strength in his voice and all he could hear were incomprehensible whispers. Jungkook panicked when the monster stepped closer and immediately swung his knife through its neck out of instinct. He waited for him to drop to the ground, but instead, the beast let out a terrifying blood-curdling scream before he jerked the knife out of Jungkook's hand and then wrapped its hand around his neck. 

The beast paused for a few seconds as if he was shocked that he could do that. It squeezed Jungkook's neck tighter as the boy struggled to fight it off, which seemed to agitate the monster even further—his years of training were erased from his memory because of the panic and shock. Amethyst, please .

A knife sliced through the air and landed directly on the monster's head. This time, it did not pass through like Jungkook's, but the black knife stayed in its head as it sank to the ground away from him. In a second, the monster disintegrated into dust, and the younger man finally took a deep gulp of air and slid down the nearest tree. 

Then, the noise of leaves rustling caught his ears, and he looked in that direction to find an outrageously gorgeous man in front of him. Jungkook was sure that he was hallucinating or dying and went to heaven. A beautiful face could only belong there. Messy black hair with curls, strong jawline, a lean but muscular build, powerful, intimidating eyes, honey skin that glistened even in the dark and...

"Slacking on the job, little Shadow?" And that sexy, chilling, baritone voice... wait? What job?

"Huh?"

The handsome man was crouched down, taking back the black knife on top of the pile of dust. "Why were you using a regular knife instead of the Nocturnal blade?" He asked while pointing at the black knife he used to save Jungkook.

Jungkook started returning to his senses as the stranger continued to speak to him casually about things that made no sense in his head. "The what blade? Shadow? I'm sorry, but I do not understand what you are… saying.” He looked down at the pile of dust again before meeting the eyes of the assailant. “And what in the world just happened?" It was evident that Jungkook was still coming down from the shock.

"You're a Scarlet Shadow, right?" He looked genuinely confused as to why Jungkook did not know the meaning behind the words he was saying or why Jungkook seemed so frightened and lost.

Jungkook calmed down his racing heart and remembered that he was a prince who needed to control his emotions and get over any trauma. He stood to face the hot stranger and raised his chin high despite his trembling hands, "No... I am Jeon Jungkook, the crown prince of Euphoria." The stranger raised his eyebrows in shock, encouraging Jungkook to continue. "I am eternally grateful for your bravery in saving me from that monster, and you shall be compensated well for that. I shall report to the capital of such monstrous beings lurking in the forests, so it'd be greatly appreciated if you could come with me. Our ride should be here any second now." As soon as he said that, they heard the roar of his dragon, Amethyst, piercing through the air.

The handsome stranger looked pale, confused, and shocked as soon as the dragon's presence became apparent. "Um... I'm sorry, but I have to go, " he said hurriedly and did not address Jungkook or bow after knowing his identity like every other civilian accustomed to the royalty courtesies. Not a single spec of shock or interest, or awe. 

He blocked the stranger's path, trying to look authoritative, only to be met by intense black eyes boring into his soul. "It's impolite to address a Prince without courtesy, but I will let it go since you saved my life. However, I command you to come with me so that we can report this incident to the Queen, and you can receive compensation for saving my life." Jungkook said with a pout and arms over his chest.

The stranger narrowed his eyes, which made him look even more intimidating in the dark. "I am not your subject, and neither can you command me, little prince. Talk to your momma about this, but know that mere humans on top of dragons won't be able to do anything. On the other hand, I must do something far more important than your wishes, so move along."

It took Jungkook a few seconds to register the words that left his mouth. He was fuming at the man's audacity. Why must a handsome face belong to such a disrespectful man? Who even was he to talk to him like that? How rude. "I can have you cremated alive for saying that!"

The stranger then dared to laugh like a child throwing a tantrum. "Fire does not burn me, little prince. However, I will let you try when we meet again. And when we do, you will know who I am and be less oblivious. As entertaining as this encounter was, I need to find some answers. Now hop to your dragon before you draw out another evil soul." The taunting smile did not leave his handsome face when he waved at Jungkook.

The arrogance in his tone made Jungkook scoff and feel flustered. Who does he think he is? But before Jungkook could comment, the handsome stranger disappeared within a blink of his eyes. He looked around the forest, but there was no sign of him. He began to question if everything he saw was a hallucination. His thoughts were interrupted by the gentle noise of his dragon's wings flattering. He glanced around one last time and noticed the black knife on the ground where the stranger was standing. Jungkook hesitantly picked it up and inspected the black dagger. While walking towards his dragon under the pale moon hue, his eyes caught the tiny initial on the back of the blade. KTH.

.˳·˖✶𓆩𓁺𓆪✶˖·˳.༄

Twenty-five years ago

Sitting by the sea was the only time the dragon queen felt at peace. It was ironic. The princess who rules over enormous creatures that can make the whole world go up in flames would find solace in the presence of the one element that can diffuse the fire. That may be the reason. Oceans made the igniting fire in her heart calm down.

"You look more miserable than yesterday." A figure emerged from the sea and slowly started walking towards her. He looked breathtaking, with the water dripping down his skin and illuminating under the moonlight. He certainly fits the title of the most beautiful angel and the king of the Ocean.

"You are more annoying than yesterday." The princess glared at her childhood friend. Seokjin chuckled and sat next to her after playfully nudging her in the process.

"How's mini Sunmi coming along?" He asked, looking at his friend's baby bump.

"More like mini Jaehyun. I had to eat strawberry with fish to satisfy this monster." She said, scrunching her nose in disgust while Seokjin looked horrified.

"First of all, disgusting. Second of all, leave my fishies alone!" He said in mock anger, causing Sunmi to giggle wholeheartedly. She looks like the personification of sunlight when she laughs, and it's heavily contagious because the archangel joins her in a few seconds.

The laughter mellows out into a comfortable silence. Sunmi looks down at her belly and lovingly caresses it. "Jeon Jungkook..."

"Hmm?" Seokjin looks at his best friend again and lowers his eyes to her bulging stomach.

"His name is going to be Jeon Jungkook." She said with a soft smile. "That's what Jaehyun wanted to name his son and... I think that it will be perfect for him." The princess' mood started to go down at the thought of her lover. "He's not coming back, is he?" Tears started forming in the corners of her eyes.

Seokjin took a sharp breath and looked away from his friend. "I know it is hard, but it is for the best. You are getting married to Lord Seo in a week. And once you do, no one can stop you from being the next dragon queen. Besides, his job... He has too many enemies to be around you two..."

"I know... I wish it were easier." Sunmi said before letting the tears she held back stream down her face. Seokjin wrapped his arms around his friend and let her cry on his chest.

From a distance, a dark figure watched intensely at the couple, and a tiny droplet slipped from his onyx eyes. He turned around, got on his majestic black horse and set off into the night as the scarlet dust followed him.

.˳·˖✶𓆩𓁺𓆪✶˖·˳.༄

(Taehyung’s POV)

When darkness engulfs the land of the living, Taehyung finds his place of leisure within the forest. To everyone else in the underworld, he is a hunter who loves to torture souls for personal amusement. Although he loved torturing souls for their actions in the land of the living, he did not enjoy inflicting pain but the sense of justice. In shorter words, he felt better avenging the victims of the soul. 

And that made the fallen different from the demons. Demons were a blank slate that had only the words of sadism written on them. The fallen angels had much more complicated emotions than sadism. Some held grudges, some missed their lives in the Silver City, some preferred to stay away from hellish affairs, some accepted their lives in hell, some liked torturing souls as an outlet for their conflicted emotions, and some believed they were serving justice. All Taehyung knew was hell, unlike the other fallen angels. But he did feel. And whenever he did, he would go to Earth to find tranquillity.

The day he met the most fascinating boy he had ever laid eyes on was no different. He was on Earth sitting on top of a tree in the forest with the excuse of hunting. He picked the tallest tree to climb up and feed his eyes with the view of the glimmering lake and the diamonds in the sky surrounding the moon. The starry sky can only exist as an illusion in hell, and Taehyung does not feel the same spiritual connection. It does not call out his name. He does not feel the rare feeling of peace. 

He was sitting there for a while, gazing up at the sky with a soft smile when he heard the shrieking noise of horror. He had heard sounds like these all his life to know what they belonged to. Guess I can show up with a soul this time. Rolling his eyes in annoyance, he stood up on the tree branch and scanned the area to pinpoint the location of the sound. Another scream from the same source made his job easier, and he sped through the forest to approach the exact area. As he got closer, he heard the sound of another person struggling. Finally, he saw the scene of the soul that took after its terrifyingly decomposed body, which confirmed that he was out without getting caught for a long time. In the scene, he also saw a boy with a red face fighting clumsily against the hand wrapped around his neck. 

He thought the boy was a young Scarlet Shadow because he could see the soul. He saw a blade lying next to him from the corner of his eye that was not the Nocturnal blade. Why was he using an ordinary knife?

Taehyung did not wonder for long before he took out his knife and aimed it at the back of the head of the evil soul. With a flick of his wrist, he threw the knife at his target. He watched the mess fall to his knees, disappear into dust, and the boy heaving for air. The boy took in all the oxygen he was deprived of and leaned against the tree. His heart skipped a beat when he could fully see the boy's features. Even though he looked unfocused and panicked, he was beautiful. What a pretty Scarlet Shadow Yoongi made.

He was quickly proven wrong when the identity was revealed, followed by the sound of the majestic beast that Taehyung hadn't had the opportunity to see. Even without witnessing the master's call for his dragon, he would have believed him. He had a sense of pride and ignorance that all humans in power possess. The lack of knowledge of other powerful entities except for themselves, and ungratefulness. The mindset that they have the right to order around everyone, and people are entitled to serve them with their lives belongs to most royals back in hell. Also, the addictive scent of vanilla came out of him instead of flesh. 

It is a shame that someone with such angelic features is also like that.  Well, the real angels of the Silver City are similar, so it makes sense.  

However, the elephant in the room was the question of how the human interacted with a soul if he was not a Scarlet Shadow. He has never heard of anyone with that ability in his two hundred years of existence. He needed to ask Yoongi why the crown prince of Euphoria could see souls and if there were more humans like him.

.˳·˖✶𓆩𓁺𓆪✶˖·˳.༄

By the time Taehyung reached back to hell, the meeting with the Scarlet Shadows had already started. It's a perfect opportunity to bring up the possibility of humans interacting with escaped souls and putting another card into their unstable house of cards. Taehyung marched past the guards into the waiting room and had all eyes turn toward him. 

"Taehyung?" Hoseok asked with curiosity as he eyed him from across the room. Taehyung never attends meetings like these because it is too much politics for him. He's always been the 'Tell me what to do, and I'll do it’ type of guy. 

He looked at Hoseok and Yoongi and glanced around the room to decide whether to add all these people to the new information. "I need to talk to Yoongi and Hoseok right now." He chose to disclose to the leaders first and let them decide. 

"Taehyung, I have to finish the meeting as soon as possible because the scarlet shadows have to return to work soon," Yoongi felt annoyed by the interruption.  Well, I'll say it here.

He took a deep breath and spoke loudly with the most dominant, authoritative voice to ensure everyone heard him. " I met a half-human and half-scarlet in the forest, on Earth with a fucking dragon." 

There was an uncomfortable pregnant pause as he smugly spotted the gears turning in the heads of all the people before the shock overtook their features, and then he heard the whispers of horror. 

"Taehyung, stop joking and wasting our time. That is fucking impossible." Yoongi glared at him, which caused Taehyung to roll his eyes. 

"You should know I couldn't care less about these meetings. I am telling you what I saw. I watched the motherfucking prince of Euphoria get strangled by a rotting soul before I put a knife through its head. Then, I had the privilege of witnessing his oversized lizard dog coming to pick him up." He crossed his arms over his chest and met Yoongi's gaze to challenge him. Taehyung has never been someone who lies, and Yoongi knows that better than anyone. However, Taehyung's claim is impossible. 

Before Yoongi could retort, another voice spoke up. "He's telling the truth." All eyes turned toward the only person in the room who kept silent throughout the commotion. "The prince of Euphoria does possess the ability to see souls, even though I wished upon every entity that he didn't." It was Jaehyun, one of the oldest and most respected surviving scarlet shadows. He stood from his chair and met Yoongi's eyes with tears welling up. "I'm sorry I should have told you this earlier, but I kept hoping he would turn out entirely... human." 

"Jaehyun... What have you done?"

.˳·˖✶𓆩𓁺𓆪✶˖·˳.༄

Flying on top of his best friend was the best feeling that had no comparison to anything. He felt the adrenaline pump through his veins as the wind hit his rosy cheeks and his heart sung with joy. Being a dragon rider was Jungkook's favourite, and he would not trade it for anything. While in the air, his mind was off to the bizarre incident he fell victim to.

He heard the wings fluttering as Amethyst slowly put herself down on the ground in the courtyard. Jungkook sighed in disappointment because he wanted to ride more, but he had to tell people of his deadly encounter with the monster, and the pretty and disrespectful man. The dread started to creep into the pit of his stomach. He was not over the shock of the attack, what he saw and what that meant. 

The anxiety that briefly left his mind while he was with his dragon started to flood back as he pondered the stranger's words about their capabilities and his lack of knowledge about the mysteries of the universe—about evil souls lurking in the shadows. He hoped his mother and Namjoon were less in the dark than he was.

He quickly dismounted his dragon and scratched the purple scales on her neck as a thank you. The soldiers rushed near the prince with their heads down to accompany the prince back inside the castle. One of them looked up briefly, and his eyes went wide. "My prince! What happened to your neck?" Jungkook should have realized that the beast had left bruises on his neck. It did not hurt that bad anymore, but he could imagine it looked gnarly. 

"I'm fine. I need to speak to Mother and Namjoon." He did not spare any glances at the soldiers as he entered the castle with them hurriedly following behind him. He had to stay calm and focused.

The minute he walked into his mother's room, he was met with three pairs of eyes projecting different emotions: concern, intrigue, and disapproval. 

"Jungkook?" His mother stood abruptly at the sight of her son's battered state. "Who did this to you?" She asked as she cupped his cheeks to look closer at his neck. 

The old hag stepped in before Jungkook could answer her. "You disrespectfully left the meeting room after making a joke of your mother and decided to show up after a fight?" If his mother was not right before him, he would have marched to the other side and punched his stepfather. "I wonder how much more we have to cover up your disgrace." He wanted to toast the bastard to the ground. 

He rolled his eyes and was about to say that, but Namjoon beat him. "Calm down now. Let the boy talk before you run your imaginations about your hard work covering for the royal family." The sarcasm was prevalent in his graceful tone, which caused the other man to turn red. "Besides, your presence was not requested if I heard the guard right."

Hyuk was about to open his obnoxious mouth again to argue with Namjoon, but his mother interrupted. "Hyuk, I think it's better if you take some rest. If there is anything you need to know, I will pass it on to you, " his mother said, turning her back to him. This signalled him to leave them, and Hyuk frowned at it. He did not protest, even though his hands were balled in a fist. 

"As you wish, my Queen." He said instead and walked out of the room. If there was one redeeming quality about his stepdad, it was his submission to his mother and her orders. 

Once the door closed behind him, Jungkook took a deep breath and met his mother's unwavering gaze. "I know it will sound unbelievable, but there is something sinister in the Daria forest, and I was attacked by... a thing... I'm still unsure whether it was a figment of my imagination," he said, his voice trembling as the haunted memory came back. 

Namjoon's usually calm expression morphed into a concerned frown, and his mother kept tracing the marks on his neck with her eyes. "What attacked you, Jungkook?" 

A beast? A monster? A living corpse? The voice of the stranger rang inside his head. ' Now hop to your dragon before you draw out another evil soul.'  " He said it was an evil soul..." Jungkook said as he stared off into space distractedly. Sumni sucked in a deep breath and stumbled back, and Jungkook caught the act. Her eyes were filled with fear and disbelief as she looked at her son. His mom did know more than he did. 

Namjoon, on the other hand, seemed confused and oblivious. "Who's he? And an evil soul? You're not talking in metaphors, are you?" 

Jungkook shook his head and continued with the story. "While in Daria forest, I saw something like a decomposed corpse. I tried to attack it, but my knife would not go through, and it triggered the beast to strangle me, which is how I got these bruises. Then a stranger came out of nowhere and threw this black knife at the beast, immediately killing it." He pulled the black dagger from his belt to show it to his mother and Namjoon. 

His mother's expression turned even more distraught as she shook her head. "Mom? You know about this, don't you?" However, Sunmi could not speak of the war inside her head. She just stared at the familiar dagger and felt her heart break for more reasons than one. She did not realize she was tearing up until she felt her son's hands on her warm cheeks. "Mom, what's wrong?" Namjoon moved closer to them as his confusion kept increasing. 

"No... You can't be like him..." She muttered in between rapid breaths. Jungkook knew his mother was on the brink of a panic attack, and he slowly made her sit on the chair and kneeled. "I can't lose my baby too..." 

"Mom, take deep breaths. You won't ever lose me." But his mom seemed too lost in her thoughts to acknowledge his words. Jungkook followed her gaze on the floor beside him where the knife rested. "Hyung, bring some water, please." He asked Namjoon, who bewilderedly stood behind them. He heard shuffles as he kept his hands locked with his mother, who slowly watched the cloud in her eyes start to clear.

"Your father... Had one just like that." Jungkook froze as he heard the words escape his mother. She never spoke about his biological dad, even when he found the truth about Seohyuk. "I thought I could protect you. I was sure you were not a Scarlet Shadow once I saw you ride your dragon."  Scarlet Shadow... That's what the stranger called him.  Jungkook's mind was in disarray. He felt overwhelmed with everything that transpired today but had to be strong for his mom. 

He did not press more questions and let his mom drink some water and compose herself. While doing that, he let his mind wonder if the stranger he saw was a Scarlet Shadow. He knew now his father was a Scarlet Shadow, and these entities had ties with the evil souls he saw with his own eyes. 

After a few minutes of silence, his mother made him freeze again. "We need to summon satan."  SUMMON WHO?!  For a whole minute, Jungkook thought his mother was completely out of it. He looked around to see Namjoon, whose eyes were wide with disbelief. Jungkook was glad to know that this was not a common dragon royalty term that he did not know. It was common knowledge that the dragons were a gift from Satan, and it had caused a lot of people to be against the dragon riders for centuries since they shook hands with the devil to gain power. To a certain degree, Satan was the entity his bloodline believed in more than God.

 However, some hated him because they thought they were granted pleasure in their short time on Earth, only to burn for eternity because of their relationship with the dragons. Jungkook, on the other hand, was always taught to only believe in himself and not look for answers from any entities. So hearing his mother, who taught him to believe in himself, talk about seeking out Satan for help was more of a shock than the aspect of summoning him.

"Are you perhaps talking in metaphors?" Namjoon asked, and if it were any other situation, Jungkook would have giggled.  

Sunmi stood up as she had finally composed herself and slipped into her duty as Queen and mother. "I promise I'll explain everything, but we must ensure Jungkook's protection first. Double the guards around his quarter and bring Amethyst to stay in his garden." She then looked at the knife with melancholy. "Keep the knife with you, Jungkook. Whoever saved you was kind enough to let you have it; it is the only lethal weapon against the souls. We'll find a solution once I contact the king of hell." His mother's tone was hopeful and completely contrasted with her previous state. However, the words coming out of her still pour gasoline onto the fire in his head.

"How about we start with how exactly we will summon the fucking Satan?" Namjoon was just as confused as Jungkook about the whole situation. 

"I have a friend who can help me. Ensure Jungkook has the highest security and rest in the quarters. We'll go to the seashore as soon as the sun rises." And with that, Jungkook was ushered out of the room with Namjoon and the guards following him. 

He heard Namjoon faintly tell one of them about the Queen's order because his mind did not stop racing. All he wanted was to take a shower and fall into a deep sleep. However, after he was done with his shower, the paranoia of an evil soul kept him awake. He did not let go of the dagger even once throughout the night. 

.˳·˖✶𓆩𓁺𓆪✶˖·˳.༄

There was nothing but pin-drop silence in Yoongi's study room as the king sat on his chair and pinched his nose bridge to control his wrath. Jaehyun stood with his eyes looking at his feet, and hands clenched behind his back, anticipating the rage. Hoseok looked concerned and kept shifting his eyes from his brother to Jaehyun, while trying to process the new information about Scarlet Shadows being able to reproduce. And Taehyung was amused.

"You're telling me you gave them dicks and vaginas but didn't realize they could reproduce?" Taehyung asked as he tried to fight off the grin on his face at the whole ordeal. He loved Yoongi as his family and mentor, but also enjoyed annoying him. That's how it had always been between the prince and the king.

Yoongi turned to glare at the brat he had raised as Hoseok answered the question. "He didn't give it to them. He just turned their souls into their birth bodies." 

"If demons and dragons can procreate, should've thought of the shadows doing the same as a possibility, too."

"Taehyung, you're not helping! How was I supposed to know that they can procreate with a human? You’re not even allowed to interact with them!” He spit the last part out towards Jaehyun. “A human can interact with souls, the fucking prince and future king of Earth out of everyone, and who knows how many more there are," Yoongi said out of pure frustration, and this time, Taehyung did keep the snarky comments to himself.

After sharing the truth, Jaehyun, silent for a long time, spoke up, "I'm sorry... I'm willing to take any punishments you throw at me." He did not look up from the floor, and Taehyung sympathized with the man. He knows the other men in the room did too. 

“But why did you do it? Why and how did you meet Jeon Sunmi?” Yoongi asked.

“I met her when I went to collect her soul, after she was in an accident that led her to be in an unconscious state—just waiting for me to take her away so that her heart stops beating. But there was too much at stake if she had died. The entire trajectory of Earth seemed to be in shambles if her death resulted in the enemies' victory within their castle. Even some of the evil souls were relying on her death to have her in hell. But she did not deserve hell, Yoongi. She was still too young to find her love, but full of love. So, I broke the biggest rule of conduct by sending her back into her body. Not knowing that I was binding myself to her.”

When the three devils in the room remained silent with conflict, he continued, “I was the only Scarlet Shadow she could see and touch and just… it happened. We fell in love, and Jungkook… He was an accident because I did not know I would be able to have a child with a human, but he was a product of our love. The only symbol of it was when I had to leave so as not to endanger them both.” He kept looking at Yoongi with his teary eyes in anticipation.

The devil King sighed and shook his head,"Jaehyun, go do your work for now. I'll think about what to do later. I have to create more scarlet shadows." Jaehyun was one of the best shadows Yoongi had, and he was unsure if giving him punishment in the middle of a crisis would help. Jaehyun nodded without lifting his head and exited the room.

Only the three fallen remained when Hoseok's eyes lit up. He shifted to look at his brother, "Yoongi, what if we train the prince alongside the young scarlet shadows?" 

Yoongi scrunched his eyebrows together at the suggestion. "Why?" He asked, trying to understand the best strategist in hell. 

"We should check his limits as a hybrid and what traits he possesses other than the ability to see the spirits. He is already trained in the military, so it will be easier for us to evaluate. And a dragon-riding scarlet prince sounds like a great ally to have." That sounded like an excellent idea to Yoongi, and it was necessary to figure out what they needed to do with them before Heaven found out. However, he was the prince.

"How are you so confident that he will agree?" It was Taehyung this time who asked the question Yoongi had. "He seemed like a prideful, spoiled prince. I won't be surprised if he denies the proposal of coming to hell based on their stereotypes about this place." He sounded annoyed as he said it, but in his mind, Taehyung kept thinking about how cute the prince looked when he was pouting and was two seconds away from stomping his feet.  

A beat after he said that, there was a knock on the door. "Come in," Yoongi ordered.

The messenger demon entered the room and stood before the king. "My lord, the king of the ocean has asked for your presence on Earth at the request of the dragon queen."  Well, that was unexpected.  Taehyung thought. Yoongi and Hoseok were not expecting it either, even though they should've realized that the encounter in the forest did reach the ears of the Queen. 

"I guess we will have the answer shortly." Hoseok chuckled. 

.˳·˖✶𓆩𓁺𓆪✶˖·˳.༄

Earth during the daytime was weird for Taehyung. It was too bright and chaotic compared to the serenity of nightfall. Seagulls chirping, waves crashing, leaves crackling, and the wind carried the buzzing sound of humans and their activities to his ears. It was safe to assume that Taehyung did not like the Earth during the day. 

He turned to his left to look at Yoongi, and the older had a poker face on, but Hoseok looked...alive. The sun seemed to enhance his features as if they were glowing. He had heard rumours that Hoseok was the embodiment of sunshine and life before his fall. Maybe they were not just rumours after all. 

As they walk out of the forest, their feet touch the warm sand of the seashore, and Taehyung sees the deep blue ocean in front of him, a beautiful man with plump lips stretched into a gentle smile. The man had a uniquely sculpted face that God took care to make. Broad shoulders more than a decently built body, and a wonderfully unique but perfect face. Aside from his beauty, the man exudes power behind the smile.  No, he can't be a mere mortal.

"Fancy seeing you, my old friend." The man had his intense gaze set on Yoongi as the trio stopped walking. Taehyung had concluded by then that the man was Kim Seokjin, the ocean king, who had a history with Yoongi that some might consider friendly and some too much.

"Was expecting a bigger crowd based on your message," Yoongi said with a bored, annoyed face. He did not like to be the one waiting.

"I'm afraid it will not be too big unless you count the dragons." As if on cue, the shrill noise of a dragon's roar cut through the air, and in the sky were three creatures that started looking less like birds as they rapidly approached them.  

It did not take long for the three dragons to land on the sand a few meters away, and Taehyung felt his breath catch in his throat. All the stories he heard about dragons did not do any justice to how majestic they are in person. The three dragons, deep purple, red and gold, varied in features and size, but they all looked fearless and magnetizing. 

His attention shifted to the riders dismounting their respective dragons. First, he saw the rider of the gold dragon, a tall, attractive man with slicked-back black hair in a black military suit, a sword sheathed in his belt, and multiple badges on his chest. Then a flash of orange caught his eyes as he saw a beautiful orange-haired woman in a long red dress, hugging her curves before flowing down. Everything about her screamed authority. Taehyung knew she was the infamous dragon queen. Lastly, he catches the rider of the purple dragon, who had landed behind the other two dragons, and for the second time in the past few minutes, his breath shudders. 

His eyes fell on the starry-eyed gorgeous man, who looked even more outstanding under the sun, especially with the soft cream-coloured suit he decided to wear. When he had previously met the prince in his panicked and stressed state, he was already having trouble keeping him out of his mind. 

Seeing him for the second time without those emotions lingering in his features, he looked so angelic. It was as if the sun's hue encircled the man, making his presence the only visible one in Taehyung's eyes. He had seen many beautiful mortals before, but none could compare to Jeon Jungkook, a perfect work of art. When the prince finally looked at him, those beautiful doe eyes got wider in recognition, his cheeks turned rosy, and his mouth dropped open. Taehyung had to restrain himself from cooing at the prince's adorable tendency, but he could not hide the smile. 

Once they were face to face with the other trio that arrived, they took the initiative to bow to the fallen. Yoongi and Hoseok followed suit, while Taehyung stood there dumbfounded.  Since when do they bow to anyone?  He reluctantly gave a short bow as well to the mortals because he did not want to be disrespectful. As he was doing so, his eyes caught his black dagger nestled into the cream-coloured belt of the prince.

When the prince noticed his gaze, his hands unconsciously inched toward the dagger. Taehyung met his eyes once he stood upright, and the beautiful doe eyes that sparkled under the stars held so many questions that Taehyung would love to answer, just to keep looking at those eyes. He forgot that Jungkook was a prince, and all of his prejudice against the people of power because he was that hauntingly ethereal. 

Taehyung was brought out of his hypnotized state when he heard Hoseok clear his throat, and all eyes were on him. The prince, whose gaze was locked on Taehyung, was also brought out of his trance. He realized that while he was distracted by the prince's chocolate brown eyes, they had all introduced themselves, and only Jungkook and he were left. 

He straightened his back, hardened his gaze and looked at the Queen, "Kim Taehyung, the crowned prince of hell." As soon as he said that, he heard the tiniest gasp leave the rosy lips belonging to the prince. 

"Prince Taehyung, thank you for joining us today," Sunmi said with a brilliant smile lingering on her face, which any human would find contiguous. 

He glanced back at the prince, who seemed to be fighting off the blush that rose to his soft, pearly cheeks. Taehyung smirked because he wanted to make the prince go even redder. It was such a pretty colour on him. "I wouldn't want to miss it, considering I lost my dagger during the last encounter with Prince Jungkook." 

All three humans widened their eyes after his statement. His attention was only on the prince, whose glittery brown eyes widened with the scarlet in his cheeks deepening. Taehyung was supposed to despise humans in power. He always has, but the string in his heart, that he did not know existed, kept tugging at the sight of the pretty boy.

Sunmi broke the short silence, "In that case, I am eternally in debt to you for saving my son, Prince Taehyung." She bowed down to Taehyung with a genuine smile. Her gaze shifted to Jungkook, expecting him to do the same.

"Thank you for saving me, Prince Taehyung," Jungkook said in his sweet voice while averting his gaze from Taehyung's charcoal gray eyes. 

"I'm glad you no longer wish to cremate me alive." Taehyung could not help himself. He wanted to tease the prince and see his reaction. Preferably observe how red he could get. 

Jungkook, on the other hand, did not find it as amusing as he did. All eyes were on him, and he felt so embarrassed. He gritted his teeth, "I apologize, Prince Taehyung. I was unaware of your identity, and unfortunately, I am not used to someone as arrogant as you."  Oh, and he bites back.

"Jungkook!" Sunmi turns to her son in shock. Yoongi and Hoseok tried to conceal their smirk because someone other than them dared to stand up to the Hell prince. 

Jungkook raised his head and looked straight into Taehyung's eyes. "Although I appreciate that you saved me, you looked down on me. When I asked for your help reporting the incident and about providing you with rewards, you remained mysterious. You spoke to me with no courtesy, and insulted the royal court's ability because we are merely human. You were disrespectful to a prince, a human and the traditional royal custom." Taehyung would have scoffed if he was not afraid of breaking eye contact with the prince. He did not know why he loved those sparkling eyes that held a whole galaxy, even when the sun shone on top of their heads, even when it was burning with passion and dislike.

"Jungkook, that's enough! I apologize on his behalf, Your Majesty." Sunmi broke the connection between them.

"Don't worry about it. Prince Jungkook has every right to feel offended, especially since he was oblivious." Hoseok intervened with the most brightening smile ever. Taehyung knew he was being extra nice to Jungkook because he wanted to get his plan on track. 

Judging by the renewed blush on the younger's cheek and sharp intake of breath, it was working. Taehyung did not like that more than the young prince being a self-righteous brat. "I didn't think revealing our identity to a human would be an intellectual approach to the bizarre situation, but sure, I am the bad guy." He grumbled. 

"I am certain we were not summoned to have this conversation," Yoongi spoke up through gritted teeth before turning his dark gaze toward Sunmi. 

"Yes, you're right." Sunmi took a deep breath to compose herself. "Since Prince Taehyung was the one who saved my son, I'm sure you already know the... situation in regards to him.."

"Yes, we are aware that your son is half human and half scarlet shadow. His father filled us in about the relationship you two had." At the mention of Jaehyun, Sunmi's eyes widened. Jungkook also looked taken aback by the information. 

"My father is alive?" Jungkook asked in a timid, small voice as if trying to process the information. 

"Yes, he is. Your father is one of the strongest fighters in hell. You must've gotten his untouchable fighting skills since you got all his handsome features." Hoseok was charming with the prince, and Taehyung could not help but snort.  

He quickly realized the prince did not like that and probably thought it was because he was making fun of the younger's skills instead of Hoseok's cringy flirting. The urge to clarify himself was strong, but he had to hold himself back. Then came the question of why he wanted to clear himself and why did it matter what the prince thought of him. 

"Jungkook is not aware of his father. We were so shocked by the discovery of his abilities that I did not get the chance to fill him in." Sunmi looked at her son apologetically, who had misty eyes and slightly trembling lips. Taehyung felt an unexplainable dent forming in his heart. 

Jungkook seemed so vulnerable that Taehyung wanted to wrap himself around the prince.Cover him with his majestic black wings, and protect him against all the arrows thrown at him. At that moment, he does not care that Jungkook is prideful of his status as a prince. He stopped caring when he saw his bright, curious, lost and surprised eyes again, but he would not admit that. 

"So what do you want me to do, Sunmi?" Yoongi asked. The meeting dragged on longer than he wanted, and he wanted to return to hell.

"Can you please stop his ability to see and interact with these souls?" There was a long silence after Sumni said that, and Taehyung resisted the urge to snort again. 

"No," Yoongi said with a bored face and no further explanations. The king had too much on his plate to focus on a new project. He couldn't blame the humans for thinking he might possess such powers, but they were wrong. 

"Please... You are my only hope. I lost the love of my life because of this. I can't lose my son, too." Tears started to flood the eyes of the Queen as she pleadingly looked at them.

"Yoongi, are you sure there is nothing you can do?" Seokjin, who had been silent throughout the whole meeting on the beach, finally spoke up.

"I cannot change biology, Jin. I can create things but can not manipulate what has already been created. I did not even know Scarlet Shadows could procreate until an hour ago," he said, and the Queen's face fell harder at the information.

"That might not be fully correct, Yoongi," Hoseok interjected, which restored a glimmer of hope in the eyes of the Queen. 

"What are you talking about?" Yoongi asked in his low, angry voice.

"We know you can shift life energy to save people, and Scarlet Shadows are the energy of dead souls you transformed into their bodies," Hoseok argued. The three humans were looking at the brothers expectantly. 

"But the prince is very much alive." 

"He is, but we can not dismiss the possibility without looking into it." Hoseok then turned towards the trio and locked his eyes with Sunmi. "What if Jungkook accompanies us to hell so that we can study his potential, ability and energy to see whether Yoongi can manipulate it? We will treat him like royalty and have Taehyung train him with other Scarlet Shadows. The prince can also meet his father, and we can observe what kind of energy they share." Taehyung raised his eyebrows when he heard Hoseok mention him training Jungkook. 

He had trained Scarlet Shadows before, but he was not expecting to get the duty of teaching the prince, who despised his guts. However, he will not complain since that would give him the excuse to see the prince more.

Yoongi finally understood why Hoseok insisted on helping the prince. He did not care whether Yoongi could help Jungkook, but he wanted to set his initial plan in motion. 

"Yes!"

"No!"

Two voices echoed simultaneously throughout the beach. Jungkook snapped his head towards his mother, who looked bewildered at his response. He could not blame her because who would agree to go to the Underworld, a place full of everything evil and malicious? To get tested and trained by these monsters on top of that. They are gorgeous monsters, but monsters nonetheless. However, the minute Hoseok mentioned meeting his father, his mind got utterly occupied by that, aside from the glaring charcoal eyes of the aggravating prince of hell. 

 "Jungkook!" Sunmi exclaimed. A frown rested on her beautiful face, and her eyes were full of terror. Namjoon's stoic face could not hide his worry and shock either. He quickly hid it but kept his eyes on Jungkook, waiting for an explanation.

 "Mom, I..." He looks back at the three devils, "Can we get some time to talk about it first?" His eyes were wide with unshed tears because everything felt so overwhelming. He felt so small, intimidated, and scared.

 Taehyung's heart clenched when he noticed the prince. He was expecting to laugh at Hoseok's failed attempt. But Hoseok struck something that made hell sound appealing to someone as sweet as Jungkook. And the prince was vulnerable to it. 

 "Yes, you can, Jungkook. It is an important decision, so I hope you calculate all the pros and cons." Hoseok smiled warmly, "If it helps, hell is not different from Earth, as long as that is what you want to see, and your dragon can accompany you." Hoseok looked so trustworthy that Jungkook had to question if he was a devil or an angel in disguise. But devils and angels aren't too different after all. 

 "Yes, thank you for your time. I think we are done here." Sunmi said hastily, and it was clear that she wanted to leave before Jungkook went to hell. 

 "Wait, how do I summon you guys?" Jungkook asked as he looked up at the three demons with his big doe eyes. 

 Seokjin was about to reply, but his eyes met Sunmi. The fear in his friend's eyes and the subtle shake of her head made him seal his mouth. She wanted him to stay silent, and he did not want to contribute to the queen's anxiety regarding her beloved son. 

 Taehyung saw the whole exchange, unlike Jungkook, and it irked him for reasons he was oblivious to. He did not like that they were trying to keep Jungkook away from (him) hell. He knew Yoongi was too busy to be summoned. It is the same with Hoseok, who dedicates most of his time to crafting personalized torture ideas with his partner. They can only respond to the prince's call on time with Seokjin. Neither can Taehyung most of the time, but he has more chances of getting away with abandoning his responsibilities.

 He moved towards the prince to stand between him and Hoseok. Jungkook's beautiful eyes shot up to meet his in confusion, and Taehyung fought the desire to be enchanted by them. He motioned his fingers up in the air until a dark red crystal formed on his hand in front of Jungkook's wondering gaze. "Cut this stone with my knife, and I'll come to collect you." He said stiffly before he took Jungkook's warm hand in his cold one and flipped it to expose his palm. He dropped the stone on top of it and watched it disappear. 

 The younger immediately retracted his hand as if it had been burned by fire. "What was that?" he asked in panic, shaking his hand, which painlessly absorbed the red stone.

 Taehyung sighed and gently held the prince's hand again, prompting Jungkook's beautiful eyes to return to him. "Don't worry. It'll appear once you use it. Had to make sure it does not get lost," Taehyung side-eyed the queen, who looked more agitated. "Think about it on your palm." 

 Jungkook extracted his hands, feeling calmer than a few seconds ago. He tested the devil prince's claim and saw that the stone did appear once he thought about it. He tried to make it disappear again, which also worked. His eyes twinkled, and his lips curled in a soft smile. Taehyung watched the younger's amazement with magic fondly. As if he was not a dragon-riding prince. 

 Taehyung was dragged out of his daze when Yoongi cleared his throat. "We should get going now. I have  business to handle." He mentally shook himself before returning to his position.

 Jungkook's eyes followed him in curiosity. The younger needed help understanding Taehyung. He felt like the older thought of him as an obnoxious brat, but then he would catch soft glances from those intense black eyes directed towards him, when Jungkook's sight would be directed elsewhere. A big part of him thought he was full of himself, and it was nothing except a fragment of imagination birthed from his attraction to the handsome prince.  Yes, Jungkook admits that he is attracted to the devilish prince, even though he would love to punch him sometimes. 

Why would someone as exquisite and powerful as Taehyung be interested in a mere human, especially when he expressed how weak he thought they were? However, when the hell prince stepped up to give him the crystal, Jungkook's heart fluttered like the wings of an early-morning sparrow. He volunteered to be summoned when Jungkook was ready to go to hell. Jungkook knew from hearing the conversation between his mother and her messenger, who was carrying words from Seokjin, that summoning devils wasn't easy, and no one would give someone the tools to call them at their convenience. But Taehyung had.

On cue, the queen cut through the train of thoughts about the devil. "Thank you for answering our call." Sunmi's voice was devoid of emotion. Jungkook knew it was because she was furious, and he did not know how to articulate his explanation without having a breakdown. 

 "We'll get going then. My prince, I'll be expecting to see you soon," Hoseok smirked, and Sunmi clenched her fist. Jungkook gave him a tight-lipped smile before sneaking a glimpse at Taehyung. The devil prince did not employ any emotions, and neither did he say anything more. Jungkook did not understand if that weird feeling in his gut was  disappointment. With the snap of a finger from Hoseok, the trio disappeared into thin air. 

Jungkook jerked a little in shock because they had vanished before he could even blink. "Hoseok has the gift of teleportation, amongst other things," Seokjin answered his curiosity. 

Namjoon, who was silent most of the time, exclaimed, "Good lord, they were so hot." 

.˳·˖✶𓆩𓁺𓆪✶˖·˳.༄

The air sizzled with electricity as the devil trio came back to their home in hell. Yoongi did not waste time before rushing back into his office, probably to brood and curse God for putting this responsibility on him. Taehyung was about to go to the training ground but stopped when he saw Hoseok with a teasing smile on his face. 

 Taehyung rolled his eyes and gritted his teeth, "What?" 

He knew he would regret asking, but he knew Hoseok would open his mouth either way.

"You're totally into our little Dragon Prince, right?" Hoseok's sickening wide smile completely contrasted his image as a devil. 

 Taehyung groaned internally as he fixed his most intimidating glare at Hoseok. "My sword would certainly be in you if you don't stop talking nonsense, hyung." With one more second of his murderous eyes on Hoseok, he sped through the air. 

 "Yah! Is that how you speak to someone who fucking raised you, brat?!"

 He did not stop until his hearing was invaded by the beautiful, piercing screams coming from the walls of the training ground. Some call it a maze of torture blocks, to train new demons in all the best ways to torture the mortal residence of hell. Taehyung was responsible for training the new demons and scarlet shadows in combat, since the mortals who were soldiers retained their ability to overpower an inexperienced demon in the medium and hell despite death.

 For as long as Taehyung can remember, he was always drawn to the concept of combat. He would not describe himself as someone drawn to violence or feel violent but loves the feeling of power that surges through his veins when he holds his beloved katana, the control over his moves when he wields his weapon and the eventual fate of the person at the pointed end. He wonders if he would've been the angel of war in a scenario where his mother did not fall. However, he was not the most dangerous person in the training center for the trainees and those they were training on. 

 "You're late." A soft voice came from his office seat, facing the window opposite the entrance. 

 Taehyung raised his eyebrows and walked closer to his desk, "For what?" 

The chair swirled around, and he came face to face with his best friend, Park Jimin. 

 "Our weekly duelling session." He said exasperatedly. He got up from his chair and came closer to Taehyung. 

 Taehyung smirked, "I didn't know you looked forward to having your ass kicked."

 Jimin scoffed, "You talk like I didn't have you on your knees two weeks ago." 

 "People tend to be in that position when their brains are getting melted by a cheater." Taehyung spitted with narrowed eyes.

 "There was no rule against that." Jimin shrugged with a smug smile, seemingly proud of himself.

 Park Jimin is a fallen angel who wielded the gift of telepathy and was passionate about using that to torture whoever was unfortunate enough to fall under his care.  Jimin is two hundred years older than Taehyung, but the difference is negligible when you are immortal. He and Taehyung were appointed as trainers simultaneously, eventually leading them to be best friends. 

Jimin was indeed the most dangerous person in hell, driven by pure sadism that was harvested within him due to how brutally he was shamed and tortured before he fell for invading the mind of God. He trained demons to find their victims' most intense emotional trauma and use it against them repeatedly as a never-ending nightmare. Unlike Taehyung, he loved everything about being a fallen angel, especially tormenting the souls. And also ogling Hoseok. 

 "Anything I missed while I was gone?" Taehyung asked after he took off his clothes and settled on the couch. 

 "Surprisingly, it was quite boring-" 

 The door to his office bursts open, and a messenger demon rushes in. "Lord Taehyung, we have a huge problem!"

.˳·˖✶𓆩𓁺𓆪✶˖·˳.༄

After centuries of torment, centuries of plotting revenge, and centuries of dreaming, he was finally out.  Jeon Sunmi... Your and your bastard son's days are about to end. I am back to take what's mine.

.˳·˖✶𓆩𓁺𓆪✶˖·˳.༄

"Jeon Jungkook, pray to tell me why in the world you want to go to hell?" Sunmi immediately lost her composure as soon as they entered her chambers. 

 "What happened?" And, of course, his stepfather was also in the room. But his mother's blazing gaze was still unwaveringly on him.

 "Ma, calm down-" 

 "Calm down?! Jungkook! You are willing to leave Earth for demons in hell. DEVILS! The embodiment of manipulation, lies, betrayal and everything wrong in this world. Did you even think before you answered, or did Lord Hoseok and Prince Taehyung enchant you so damn much?" The queen's face turned bright red with anger. 

 "Demons? Devils? What are you talking about? And Jungkook has to marry the princess! He can't leave!" His stepfather came closer and looked down at Jungkook with permanent disappointment.

 "He's not leaving. I won't allow it. Fuck those devils! Summoning them was a mistake and a complete waste of time." Sunmi crossed her arms over her chest with her rage undying.

 "Sunmi, you're being a little dramatic here." Namjoon intercepted while Jungkook balled his hands in a fist, trying to control himself. "You summoned them for our situation, and Lord Hoseok was only proposing a solution." 

 "That wasn't a proposition, Namjoon. He was manipulating us so that they can use Jungkook in their hellish affairs after they pull him down to hell just like they did with his father, Jaehy-" Sunmi cut herself off once she realized she was about to mention Jaehyun. 

 As always, his mother did not give him the peace of knowing his father, which made Jungkook snap. "Don't stop now, Mother. Tell me. What the fuck happened to my father?" It started calmly, but the shock on Sunmi's face did not take long to appear. "Bloody talk about him, and stop treating him like a ghost for fuck sake." Jungkook did not realize hot tears of anger were streaming down his flushed cheeks, and he breathed heavily. 

"I had to hear that he was alive from a devil when I spent my childhood thinking he died. You didn't even tell me that Seohyuk wasn't my birth father. I had to figure it out by myself. And when you knew I found out the truth, you still did not talk about my father. I thought you were grieving, so I never pushed for answers, but now I know you were being selfish." Sunmi was no longer angry, and her eyes swelled with tears as she looked at her beloved son's anger.

"How dare you talk to your mother like this?" Seohyuk raised his voice, and Jungkook was surprised it took him that long. It is a golden opportunity for him to drag his mother to his side and remove Jungkook from the throne.

But Jungkook paid him no attention. He did not care about the stupid throne. "You kept him hidden from me all these years so that I would not go looking for him and keep enduring the insults and lashing from the person you chose to be my father instead." 

He glared at his stepfather at the last part and saw him seething on her side. "And that's why I said yes! I don't care that I can see and interact with ghosts. I don't care about training! I don't care about the devils! All I care about is meeting the father I was deprived of and seeing if I'm the disappointment I grew up thinking I was." The whole room felt suffocating once he was done pouring his heart out. The surprise on his mother's face did not slip because this was the first time Jungkook yelled at her. The longer he looked at her, the more he felt worse. He had to leave. 

He rushed out of the room, his vision blurry from more incoming tears. He was deaf to all the calls for his names; all he could think of was Amethyst. He ran past the confused guards towards the courtyard, where his beloved dragon, aware of his emotions, awaited him. As soon as he approached her, she leaned down and brushed her snot against his side to comfort him. Dragons can't talk, but every single time, his dragon felt like the only one who understood him. After scratching her scales on the side of her neck, he climbed up to his seat on her back. With one last look at the castle, Jungkook and Amethyst left the ground for the sky.

.˳·˖✶𓆩𓁺𓆪✶˖·˳.༄

Meanwhile, hell was in chaos. Not only did five mortals disappear, but three demons were dead as well. Mortal escaping has always been a recurring event, but never five at a time with such casualties. It's like as days went by, they kept getting stronger. Strong enough to collaborate despite being in separate prisons, overpowering three demons and leaving unnoticed. All while the three leaders of hell were absent. Something about this coincidence did not seem normal. There was a fault in their system that everyone failed to notice.  

Taehyung searched the escapees' files for a link, but there was none. These five people were strangers with zero personal and social ties. Each of them belonged to a different class and occupation. However, one of the escapees did catch his eye. Jeon Minyoung, Prince of Euphoria, cause of death: Fell from the sky with his dragon after being defeated by his sister in a fight. Sins: Burning villages. Pyromancy. From the royal bloodline... Taehyung rummaged through his file to find out more about his sister. But as he was supposed to turn the page, red smoke appeared around his fingertips.  

He was surprised it only took a few hours to decide Jungkook's fate because he expected to wait at least a week. He didn't think convincing the queen to give up her heir would be easy, but Taehyung was not complaining. He would never admit it, but he wanted to see the dragon prince. He wanted to see him all the time. He wanted to have him around with him. It was like a thread connecting his heart to Jungkook, and whenever the thought of the younger crossed his mind, he would feel a pull. 

He shouldn't feel like that, which bothers him. It was wrong. He is a devil. No sane human would ever want to be with him, nor does he want to be tied to a mortal. A devil loving a human was always a losing game if history was right. Jungkook and his world were too different, and that boundary should never be blurred. Taehyung, the future ruler of hell and all things dark and dead, and Jungkook, the future ruler of Earth and all things vibrant and alive. He had to snap himself out of such ridiculous thoughts and remember that the prince was an annoying brat.

However, his heart was annoyingly out of control because the minute he saw Jungkook with his big red-rimmed eyes, pink tear-stained cheeks and lips stuck between his teeth, it made a deep swoop down his gut.  How can someone look so fucking gorgeous even while crying?... Wait, why is he crying?

 He stood straight next to his majestic purple dragon and held his head high despite the signs of vulnerability. " I'm ready... Take me with you."

Maybe it was the way his voice shook or the tight clench of his hand on his side. "You're not ready," Taehyung said with a sigh, and he stared at the younger with a poker face. “You're upset and angry."

Jungkook scoffed, "How I'm feeling and whether I am ready is none of your business. I want you to take me to hell, and that's what you should do." Jungkook commanded him. In any other situation, Taehyung would've been put off by it and let it reinforce the idea of the younger being a dislikable brat. But regardless of his tone, he was right. 

There's no reason why Taehyung should care about Jungkook's emotional state. His job is to get the prince and his dragon to hell and get back to finding out more about Jeon Min-young and the escapees. But he couldn't because he knew how much Jungkook would miss home and regret leaving his mother like that. He did not want to have him moping around while he practiced. He did not want to see someone so bright be blue.

"It is my business since after I take you down to hell, your whiny self would be under my care for training and living. So I don't want to bring a depressed bunny who would get more depressed as days passed by and waste my time." He said while employing a bored facial expression. He thought he was being so cool with his indifference and uncaring about the Earth prince. However, that expression quickly crumbled when more tears started to stream down Jungkook's face.  

"Fuck all of you... Every single one of you can go fuck yourself. I'm a pawn that you people move around for convenience." He snarled and mounted his dragon effortlessly. Taehyung's brain-to-mouth connection was glitching when he heard the younger. This was not how he meant for the situation to turn out. "I should've known you gave me the stone to summon you because you wanted to reject me. I was a fool to think you did that because you cared about me." Jungkook spitted from the top of the dragon and was about to leave.

 Taehyung composed himself before asking, "Where are you going?" 

"Out of your stupid face." Jungkook spitted. Something told Taehyung he wasn't returning to the castle either. Using his power like this was probably immature, especially against something as divine as a dragon, but he had to. He could not let the younger leave like this. So reckless and unsupervised. "Amy?" Jungkook's concerned voice came through when he felt his dragon refuse to get up. Confusion and anxiety settled on his chest. His eyes fell on Taehyung again, and he gasped when he saw his eyes turn a bright red that glowed around them. His surroundings felt electric with power, all coming from Taehyung. "What did you do to my dragon?" Jungkook asked in a panic. 

Without breaking eye contact with the dragon, he said, "She's fine. I'm just letting her take a little nap while you and I finish talking." His face broke into a smirk as he saw the younger turn even redder and more adorable, with anger from the corner of his eyes. 

"You can control dragons, too! That's fucking fantastic." Jungkook hissed through his teeth. 

"I know. I'm quite impressed with myself as well." Taehyung grinned but quickly concealed it when he felt the intense heat from Jungkook's gaze. "If it makes you feel better, I can only do it when the dragon or animal feels tired and upset. I don't stand a chance when they are adrenaline-filled." 

Jungkook's eyes widen at that, and guilt creeps up on him for not paying attention to how his dragon felt, "She's tired and upset?"  

Taehyung noticed the change in tone and fought the urge to meet the eyes of the prince. "Dragons absorb what their riders feel." He sighed. "Jungkook, I will take you to hell with me. But not when I know you'll regret it later. Not when the decision is impulsive. Hell is not... pretty. Its hell. It's everything terrifying you heard about hell but can be disguised by your illusion. It can be lonely." He finally broke eye contact with the dragon to look at the prince. 

Amethyst shook her head in confusion and turned her neck to look at the prince to ask what happened to her silently. Taehyung continued, "You love your mom more than anything, and I know that because I do too. You're upset with her now, but you'll miss her terribly once you come to hell and regret this moment." Taehyung felt the younger prince loosen on top of his dragon. The weight of defeat replaced the fight filled with rage. 

"I just wanted to meet my dad..." Jungkook's eyes cast down to his hands as more tears gather. He felt like a mess. 

Taehyung took a deep breath once he comprehended the intentions of the younger. Hoseok's plan to use the younger's father to lure him in did work. He must've known his emotions were his weak points for someone as pure-hearted as Jungkook. He let go of control over the dragon and watched her droopy eyes get cleared. The dragon remained calm, as if understanding the reason behind Taehyung's actions, which was to calm her emotional rider. 

Taehyung should not open his mouth and ruin his hyung's plan, but he couldn't see the younger in such a conflict. Hoseok will kill him for this. "If your father is why you want to go to hell, then don't bother. I'll make a way for him to meet you on Earth." He knew Yoongi would probably kill him for making this proposition since Scarlet Shadows cannot interact with humans. But none of them had a half-breed son before either.

Jungkook stopped crying and widened his eyes. "You'll do that for me?" Taehyung knew he fucked up in more than two ways the minute those wide brown eyes looked at him with a shimmering hope. Such hypnotic eyes warmed him on the inside. He can only hope that he does not find himself addicted to it. 

Jaehyun is so busy you won't meet him frequently, regardless of your chosen realm. But I'll send him to meet you whenever he is free." Taehyung was about to tell Jungkook that he should decide to come to hell only if he wanted to train when something caused the hair in his arms to sit straight. Amethyst also stiffened with her eyes diluting, and the spikes glowed alarmingly.  

"What's wrong?" Jungkook asks his dragon when he senses her distress. A second after his words registered, a high-pitched noise cut through the air, following a single arrow coming straight toward Jungkook's head.

Amethyst was the first to act by shielding Jungkook with her majestic wing, causing the arrow to pierce it shallowly. Since Amethyst's father was a war dragon, she was genetically wired to be quick at combat and defence with high pain tolerance. The only other dragon stronger than her was Namjoon's Thebes due to intense training and war experience.  

She turned toward the arrow and let out a blood-curdling screech when it pierced the curtain of his wings. She was about to burn everything to the ground, but this time, more arrows descended from the sky. There are too many for the dragon to block without enduring significant damage to her wings. Jungkook clenched his eyes, hugging Amethyst tightly to brace himself for the pain. However, those arrows never showered on them. 

Jungkook loosened his grip and opened his eyes slowly to look around. Once he inched forward from his position on top of Amethyst, he saw Taehyung standing in front of them with a katana in his hand. All the arrows were scattered on the grass, cut in half. "Jungkook, get out of here." He said with his back facing them.

"What about you?" Jungkook yelled.

"I'll be fine. Just leave right now." Jungkook watched Taehyung dissipate into a sharp gust of wind when he ran into the forest. He took deep breaths to calm his nerves but saw the trail of blood from his dragon's wings. 

"Oh, Amy..." He felt like crying again because of his situation. He felt sorry for his beloved dragon. With one last look towards the forest, Jungkook guided his dragon to reach for the sky. However, the further he went, the more unsettled he felt about leaving Taehyung.

As Taehyung had expected, the ones attacking them were recently dead bodies possessed by souls that escaped hell. Possessed bodies are much more powerful than when it was alive, which explains their precise aim. However, he needed to find out why they were after Jungkook specifically. What could they possibly need from him to sacrifice themselves? Or were they expecting Taehyung to be absent?

He managed to kill all the attackers except one. He approached the man on his knees and grabbed him by his neck. He harshly pushed him onto the tree and lifted him while maintaining a tight grip on his neck. "How foolish must you be to attack someone in my presence after escaping hell?" The man's face started turning a deep shade of purple, but much to Taehyung's surprise, he started smiling. He punched the man in his stomach and watched him cough out blood. He smiled bigger with his red-stained teeth.

With a crushed throat, the man choked, "Who said we were running from you?" 

Taehyung did not have time to frown before a sharp pain started spreading from his chest. Without loosening his grip on the man before him, he saw a knife projecting out of his chest. Despite the pain, he rolled his eyes. "Idiots..." He snapped the man's head and elbowed the one holding the knife behind him with a force that sent him flying until he impacted with another tree, followed by a sickening crunch. He turned around with the knife lodged in his chest to the three new faces.

They watched him in shock as he remained unbothered despite the pain in his chest and a knife hanging from there. He did not care that his shirt got soaked with blood pouring out of the wound.  Wait... Why am I still bleeding?  He thought in confusion. Maybe I need to pull it out.  He reached behind his back and slowly pulled the knife out while clenching his jaws to not groan in pain. However, blood started to gush out of his wound with more force. It was not healing...

With the rapid blood loss, Taehyung started feeling dizzy. He could make out the grinning faces of the attackers when they realized their plan was, in fact, a success. His vision was spinning, and his knees felt weak. He did not know he was on the ground until someone pulled him by his hair. He saw one of the attackers holding the knife and was about to strike.  So this is how I die...  

" Finally, we all get our revenge..." The man sneered and pulled his hand back. 

"STAY THE FUCK AWAY FROM HIM!" A voice roared from the sky, accompanied by an ear-splitting scream. Taehyung must've been hallucinating because the voice sounded like the prince that had been haunting his thoughts... Jeon Jungkook. He was losing his senses, but the word burn echoed through his mind before a familiar warmth engulfed him, and his sight filled with beautiful amber. 

He did not know when he lost consciousness, but after opening his eyes, he met the sparkly doe brown eyes reflecting the sky's constellations above his favourite lake. "Taehyung... wake up." His eyes closed again.