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Jonghyun watched as Key stood up and was pulled reluctantly to the center of the sparring area. He kept grumbling about how he didn’t want to have any part of this, and other stuff about hallucinations that nobody paid any attention to.

When Kai was situated opposite Key, Suho called out, “Ready?”

Key huffed and dropped his arms heavily to his sides. “Come on, do you seriously expect me to—“

Kai suddenly threw his fist full force at Key, cutting him off. But Key quickly dodged left.

Kai stood there for a second, stunned like everybody else in the room that he hadn’t landed that punch. Key was no longer complaining. Instead, he became incredibly focused, his eyes never leaving his opponent.

Kai smirked and went for Key again. Key spun out of the way. Kai threw more at Key, and Key blocked and dodged everything. Kai couldn’t land anything on him. He increased the speed of his attacks, and Key continued to swerve around them.

The entire room was mesmerized by the spectacle. Jonghyun thought they didn’t even look like they were fighting anymore. It was like Kai was leading Key in a complicated dance, and Key was picking up the steps as he went along.

Suddenly, Kai swung his leg at Key’s head. Jonghyun thought for a moment that he would knock Key down for sure. But then, Key ducked underneath it, then swung his own leg at Kai’s remaining leg he was standing on, sending it out from beneath him. The sparring match ended with Kai on his back and staring up at Key who was standing over him.

The entire room was stunned into silence. Finally, Suho started clapping. “Alright!” he cheered. “We can definitely work with this.”

Kai sat up, smirking up at Key. “If you don’t mind, Suho,” he said to his leader. “I’d like to train him myself.”

“Woah,” Mary Sue exclaimed as she, Amber, and Jonghyun walked up to their friend. “How did you get so good, Key?” she asked.

“What are you talking about?” Key scoffed, putting his hands on his hips. “I’m obviously dreaming right now.”

Suho and the Hunters agreed to train each of you starting the next day after school. In return, you would also help them with research and, if you ever became good enough in combat, some easy missions. In a sense, you, Jonghyun, Key and Amber were like vampire hunting interns.

Each of you would be trained by one of the Hunters. Lay would train Jonghyun and Amber would learn from Kris. Kai had immediately resolved to be the one to train Key personally. You could tell he was very impressed with Key’s natural fighting abilities, but you wondered if he didn’t have some ulterior motive for it. Kai seemed like he wasn’t often outdone in things he was good at, and you could sense a competitive spirit in him. Would he want to train Key so he could have a chance at a rematch? You supposed that wasn’t really your concern though. You had your own training to worry about.

You were to be trained by the mysterious, dark-eyed Hunter, Tao. Since you were the Chosen One, you had to know how to protect yourself and fight off vampires. Tao had been trained in various martial arts from childhood, and was extremely skilled and precise. He was their best fighter, and it only made sense for you to learn from the best if you were going to seriously defend yourself.

Unfortunately, you weren’t doing a very good job of defending yourself at the moment. But it was your first day training. You were the Chosen One, weren’t you supposed to just be naturally good at this stuff? You would pick it up within a couple of days.

But it was becoming increasingly difficult just to keep up with Tao, let alone defend yourself from him.

“Let’s try it again,” you panted for the eighth time maybe that day. He still stood before you, stoic and straight-backed and breathing normally as if this wasn’t physically taxing on him at all.

He maneuvered through the steps again, reminding you where to step, how to block, how you should predict and react to his movements. He was graceful as a panther, and you felt as clumsy and vulnerable as a baby deer.

You fumbled your way through the walkthrough again. You didn’t really have a problem when Tao was going slow like this. It was after the practice round, after he had meticulously taken you through all the possible steps he could take and how you should defend yourself against them, and once he started attacking seriously that you just couldn’t keep up with him. Suddenly, he was moving like lightning, and you could barely register his movements enough to predict them, much less react. You didn’t know how someone could move that fast!

But you chalked your struggling up to slow reflexes and kept going, despite the increasing number of small cuts and bruises you were sustaining. If your training was this difficult, you couldn’t imagine what your non-Chosen friends were going through right now.

You asked them about it at lunch one day, when just the four of you were at the table still, and Sunny, Sungmin, and Krystal hadn’t arrived yet.

“Lay said I’m learning pretty quickly,” Jonghyun said happily. “I mean, it’s just basic combat, you know? Also he started teaching me first aid. Did you know he’s a healer?” he added, grinning excitedly. “It’s his cool talisman power thing.”

You nodded, smiling. You knew Lay was a healer. He was the one who healed Donghae.

“I can’t exactly learn any magical healing powers, but he’s going to teach me some really cool herbal medicines and techniques later.” Jonghyun sat back, pleased with his experiences with his new mentor so far.

So Jonghyun didn’t seem to be having a hard time. But, like he said, he was only learning basic combat, and you were being trained by the most advanced fighter in the Hunters’ brotherhood.

“Kris started showing me all the different weapons you can use against vampires,” Amber said, picking up the conversation. “Like different blades and projectile weapons and stuff.” She grinned. “I started practicing with the crossbow. It’s an awesome weapon,” she added.

“Have you used a crossbow before?” you asked her, wondering how she fared on her first day of training. She shook her head. “Must’ve been difficult then,” you said.

“No,” she answered, “not really. I got the hang of it pretty quickly.”

You shrugged noncommittally. “Well, you’ve been in archery for years,” you said. She nodded.

Wasn’t anyone else having as difficult a time as you were with your training? You looked at Key. His arms were crossed and he was staring at the table, pouting.

“What about you, Key?” you asked him. “How was training with Kai?”

Without looking up from the table, he heaved a deep, irritated sigh. You sat back, a little relieved. As you took a bite of your churro, you contemplated how Key must have been really struggling with his training for him to not want to talk about it with you.

Jonghyun watched as Key trained after school that day. He was a bit mesmerized by his movements. Key was a natural. It was obvious watching him that Key was the most talented of the four of them, having no trouble at all with his training. Kai was still having a hard time landing anything on him whenever they sparred. Now though, Kai was just showing Key different moves, and Key mimicked them as he saw them. Jonghyun felt like he was witnessing a dance.

He watched as Key ducked and swerved around invisible opponents, saw his careful footwork as he stepped gracefully about the room, noticed each deliberate gesture, all the intricacies of every movement—

“Jonghyun.” Lay’s voice snapped him out of his trance, and he shifted his focus to his trainer just in time to see the other deliberately knock his legs out from beneath him. Jonghyun landed on the mat with a thud. “Pay attention,” Lay ordered, smirking.

“Sorry,” Jonghyun muttered, taking Lay’s offered hand and allowing himself to be pulled to his feet.

Lay glanced at the other two who were training in the room. “Captivating to watch, isn’t it?”

Jonghyun blinked off his sudden embarrassment. “Uh… yeah, I guess,” he mumbled.

Why did Jonghyun feel like he was trying to hide something? And why was Lay looking at him like he knew what it was? It was a little disconcerting. Jonghyun tried to shake it off.

“Maybe we should switch our focus to healing remedies for now?” Lay offered. “It might be less distracting somewhere else.”

Jonghyun nodded, thinking that was probably best, but still feeling slightly disappointed for some reason, and followed Lay out of the training room, leaving Key and Kai alone together.

Why did Jonghyun feel bothered by that?

He tried to shake the feeling off again.

You sighed as you stared up at your ceiling, contemplating this whole crazy plotline you seemed to find yourself in. You still hadn’t gotten very far with your training, like you had hoped. But your friends seemed to be having no problem with it at all. You thought, and even selfishly hoped, that Key was also having trouble keeping up, but according to Jonghyun, he was basically a genius when it came to movement. So you were alone in your suffering.

Why couldn’t you just be better at this whole fighting thing? You were supposed to be the Chosen One, you were supposed to be able to stop the world from plunging into darkness and suffering from a vampire apocalypse. How could you do that when you couldn’t even defend yourself properly?

Not only were you frustrated yourself, but Tao was increasingly frustrated with you as well, which only made you more frustrated with your inabilities. Tao was already an ace fighter, and you seemed to be taking forever just grasping the concept of reflexes. He still moved too fast for you to see, and he started lashing out at you for being so slow to react. You still couldn’t fathom how someone was so quick. It was bothering you to no end.

Still, you wouldn’t give up, you thought as you held Chanyeol’s Phoenix Talisman between your fingers, feeling the grooves of the phoenix design. There was no way you could just quit after a few training sessions. The Hunters were counting on you for your help, and you would help by learning to protect yourself. Then Chanyeol wouldn’t have to take on the burden for you.

You smiled at the thought and turned over to get some rest. You still had school the next day.

At lunch, Amber reminded you just how urgent your training really was.

“What is this specific event that the vampires are waiting for?” she asked you.

“I don’t know,” you answered. “The Hunters don’t know yet either. That’s what they’re trying to figure out.”

Her facial expression became very concerned and anxious.

“Why?” you asked.

She sighed through her nose. “It’s just,” she began, concern still in her eyes. “It’s only getting closer,” she said. “What if that day comes, and we’re not ready for it?”

You felt a pang of anxiety from her question.

“I just wish I knew how much time we had,” she lamented.

“We’ll find out,” you said, trying to reassure everybody. “Chanyeol’s been doing a lot of reading, and—“

“What are you talking about?” Krystal asked interested, sitting down with her lunch tray, along with Sunny and Sungmin.

“Nothing.”

“A book,” Amber covered quickly.

“Oh really?” Krystal responded. “What’s it about?”

“Vampires.”

Amber shot an incredulous glare at Key, who returned it with an amused smirk.

“Oh, that sounds interesting,” Sunny joined in. “What happens in it?”

“Uh, well,” Amber stuttered. “The female protagonist is pursued by a vampire… uh, and…”

“And there’s another guy who protects her from the vampire,” you continued. “And… um…” You looked at Jonghyun as a cue for him to pick up the volley.

“Uh…” he trailed. “And they both want her for themselves…? B-because they’re… sworn enemies?”

Sunny and Krystal looked enthralled. “Wow,” Sunny said.

“Sounds familiar,” Krystal remarked.

You giggled nervously. “A-anyway,” you stammered, turning back to Amber. “The characters in that book,” you began, trying to find a way to convey to her without raising suspicion what you were trying to say. “I think they’ll find a way to stop that prophecy pretty soon. After so much reading, it has to happen soon.”

Amber nodded, still thinly concealing an expression of concern. You hoped you were right.

Despite the urgency, your body wouldn’t listen to your hopes. You still couldn’t keep up with Tao during training, and both of you were just getting more frustrated with each other.

“Block, Mary Sue!” he cried at you as you fell over from a blow to your left side.

“I’m trying,” you insisted, exasperated and exhausted. “Can’t you slow down just a little bit?”

“Did you know vampires can move in super speed?” he countered sternly.

You glared at him, remembering your encounters with TOP when he had moved without you even seeing how he did it.

“A vampire isn’t going to slow down so you can have a fighting chance,” he said. “Stand up.”

You stood up, still panting and arguing. “But I’m not improving at all just from taking all these hits from you! It’s not helping my reflexes or my fighting skills or anything!”

“The more fighting experience you’ll have, the better you’ll be,” he answered.

“This isn’t experience!” you cried. “I’m not at the same level as you, and you can’t teach me as if I am, because I’m never going to catch up. Just because you’re some child prodigy in martial arts doesn’t mean anyone else learns at the same speed.”

His jaw stiffened. “Are you saying you don’t want to be trained?” he asked.

“I’m saying you can’t train me,” you snapped. You knew you shouldn’t have said that, since it would only cause problems for everyone if you just refused to train or demanded a different trainer. The rest of the Hunters had their own responsibilities. They couldn’t all be worrying about how you were supposed to train when you couldn’t even learn from your trainer. But you were at the edge of your patience, so the words just spilled out before you could stop them or even have time to regret saying them.

“Fine,” Tao said. “There’s the door.” He pointed, and you immediately stormed off in that direction, leaving him alone in the training room. You didn’t know where you were going, but you wandered angrily through the halls anyway. Your dignity wouldn’t permit you turning back now.

“Hey, Mary Sue!” said a cheerful voice when you blindly turned a corner, and you saw Xiu Min walking in your direction. “Where are you headed? I don’t see you around this wing of the building very often.”

You could only huff in response. His eyebrows furrowed and his smile fell.

“How is training going?” he asked tentatively.

You bit back a string of curses and tried to come up with a more well thought out response. “I can’t learn from someone who doesn’t teach at my speed,” you said.

“Wow, you must be really amazing if even Tao can’t keep up with you,” Xiu Min commended. “No wonder you’re the Chosen One.” He smiled in awe.

You sighed. “Actually, I can’t even tell when he’s about to attack,” you explained. “He can’t slow down for me. I don’t even think he realizes how fast he moves. He’s just been getting frustrated with me, and I’m really frustrated because he doesn’t understand that I can’t keep up. Whoever thought the best fighter would be the best teacher couldn’t have been more off the mark.” You finished your quickly paced rant, panting slightly, and Xiu Min’s eyebrows had migrated high up on his forehead.

“Well I’m sure you’ll pick it up soon enough,” he consoled.

“No, I won’t!” you retorted. “He just doesn’t understand the whole teaching thing. He’s short with me, and he attacks me without warning, and he’s just angry all the time! It’s so hard just to tolerate him when he never smiles even once. Can’t he try more positive reinforcement instead of taking out all his angst on me? I don’t know what his problem is, but can’t he just get over it long enough to teach me how to block?” You sighed in exasperation and frustration and anxiety and everything else you were feeling at the moment.

Xiu Min sighed too, but it sounded more resigned. “The thing with Tao…” he began. Then he seemed to remember that the two of you were just standing in the middle of a hallway, so he beckoned you into a room close by. You sat down in a couple of chairs and he leveled with you.

“Tao’s been through a lot in his life,” Xiu Min said. “You couldn’t even imagine.” He looked down as he tried to remember. “He came to us at a young age. He was barely thirteen, and he was already an excellent fighter.”

You knew he was a child prodigy, you thought with a hint of bitterness.

“It’s true he had had formal training as a kid, but… the reason he was so good was that he’d already had so much experience fighting. Everyone. Especially vampires.”

You were taken aback at this. “He was already fighting vampires as a kid? Before he even joined the Hunters?”

Xiu Min nodded and you looked down solemnly.

“Why though?” you asked. Why would he be subject to that so early? What would make someone hunt vampires for almost his entire life?

“He has a grudge against them,” Xiu Min explained. “He’s killed a lot of vampires. He has an intense bloodlust for it… but he still hasn’t killed the one he’s been after. And he won’t be satisfied until he does.”

“Why does he have a grudge against one specific vampire?” you asked.

Xiu Min’s eyes were full of worry and sympathy. “It’s the one who killed his parents,” he said reverently. “He’s been hunting this vampire since he was a kid.”

Your eyes widened, and your concerned and frightened exclamation came out in barely a whisper.

“What?!”