Yonghwa sat on a big chair, which was almost as big as his throne, but not as luxurious.  His fingers tapped on the soft fabric that  was attached to it. He was a loner. He knew he was different - the odd one out in his family or anyone else he knew. Kangjun might be the only one who felt comfortable around him but he didn’t care about it. He still got what he wanted - the throne, the power, and the people. Indeed, he had them all.

He used to be a runaway, trying to escape from the hurtful reality. During those dark periods, he had seen people dying - pale skin with dry lips that were shaking madly, eyes wide opened, with voices that were stuck on their dry throat. He didn’t felt scared, in fact, he loved it.

He enjoyed watching people die.  It was an obssession that had grown in him for years since those days when everything he had seen,  heard, and smelled was death. He still remembered seeing those fragile bodies trembled in pain and fear before they died. It gave him a weird sensation - an excitement he couldn’t find anywhere else.

Yonghwa leaned against the chair with his right fingers propped up his chin and his elbow stood straight to support him.  A young couple knelt in front of him, with tears rolling down on their cheeks, and weak voices pleading and begging him for their life.

Oh, how he enjoyed the scene.

“Please... Please spare our life.” The guy had short brownish hair and small eyes, which were red and swollen. His palms placed on one another and his body trembled in fear.

“We’ll do anything... anything, your highness.” The girl pleaded. Her black long hair waved past her shoulder while some covered her face. She had her hands clutched on the guy’s shirt, with her head hung low.

They were in a dark room, with a light beside Yonghwa serving as their only light source, but just enough for them to see his face and for him to see theirs. 

“What’s the matter? Why don’t you use your ability now?” Yonghwa asked the obvious question. He leaned forward and stared deeply onto the couple, a playful grin appearing on his lips.

He knew they can’t do anything with their ability. He had them come clean when he ordered his black knights to bring them over. He might not have any ability like those gifted people, but he knew the way to get what he wants. He earned it after years of pain.

His eyes were roaming over the ground, admiring the big circle he had drawn, right below the young couple. There were four symbols placed on four different sides. Two of them looked exactly as the shape of Kai and Kyungsoo’s necklace - one with the teardrop symbol and the other one with the fire symbol.

He narrowed his eyes and looked at the other two, the symbol of earth and wind. All four of the symbols drawn in the circle represented the four kingdoms and now, all he had to do was summon the black shadow - the power he had gained 20 years ago - and finish the ritual.

“It’s time for you to go...” He whispered before he lifted his head and looked at the small light that escaped through a hole on the ceiling. He heard the other two shriek in fear. They knew what he meant. They can see their death before their eyes, but they can’t do anything to stop it. Their ability was blocked by the strange bracelet that were stuck on their wrists in a tight grip.

They had heard about this, the story about the death of their people being the sacrifice to keep the balance of their world - the balance that was long damaged because the kings were not the real kings, and because the rules had been broken.

They hugged each other tightly and shut their eyes, with lips mumbling incoherent words that they hoped would comfort each other, but the feeling of death was too surreal, and they could only pray when they heard Yonghwa’s soft voice summoning something.

“From the darkness of the skies and the coldness of the winds, the sound of death is calling you.” He started off with a rather low voice, almost sounded like he was whispering.

Then, slowly, his voice got higher and higher by each word he said. “From the deepest hole in the ground and in the darkest place of the world, I summon you..!”

And he whispered, in a low voice with a creepy tone. “My shadows...” He smirked, and suddenly, thick dust appeared on the floor. The colour of black and gray of the dust crashed and mixed together, forming a big black shadow. More of them appeared and filled in every space in that room.

The young couple screamed in fear when they saw the black shadows creeping to them. Yonghwa took a sit on the big chair again and watched the black shadows moved painfully slow toward them both.

“No!” They screamed when the black shadows covered their toes, pulling their body deeper into the shadows.

He grinned, feeling satisfied as the shadows covered the couple from their toes to their head. He heard their screams of agony as the shadows ripped their soul from their body. They were fully covered with the black shadows but Yonghwa can see their expression clearly - the same expression he had seen years ago.

He clapped his hands a few times when the shadows disappeared slowly, leaving two lifeless bodies on the ground. There were strange globes of light on top of the dead bodies - a mixture of green and brown light. He walked over to them and touched the light, with a smirk plastered on his face. Those lights were a mixture of their ability and their souls. It wasn’t easy to obtain it and nobody can do it except for him.

It was the price he and the others had to pay to keep the balance that they had broken. He had decided to sacrifice the lives of the gifted people because their souls and abilities were by far stronger than the Orpheous people. He took off his necklace and lifted it up to the lights, and the necklace absorbed them in a flash.

“You seemed to enjoy it very much, Yonghwa.” He knew that familiar voice, deep and husky. He quickly spun around and his eyes met with the Shadow’s, although he could feel those eyes burning with fire, he still looked deep into them.

“Of course, all thanks to you for giving me such power.” A grin spread on his lips, and the Shadow laughed as it spun around the room.

........................................................

Ilhoon, Eric, Lumia and the twins had rode their horses as fast as they could, hoping to reach their destination as soon as possible. They reached at an intersection that was almost unnoticed by the rest of them until Ilhoon stopped his horse immediately. He gave signal for the others to stop as well.

“We’ve arrived.” He told them before he got off of from his horse. Eric did the same thing too, his eyes roamed around that place. The road in front of them was hidden by the thick bushes alongside the path they had ridden. He heard a bird chirping once in awhile, breaking the silence that seemed to have engulfed the whole place.

“We should leave our horses here.” Ilhoon suggested. Kai and the others didn’t say anything but they threw him an asking gaze.

“If we ride these horses and go down this road, we won’t even be ready for any blow that might hit us.” He pulled his horse by its rope and tied it to the nearest tree.

The rest of them did the same thing too, except for Kyungsoo. He looked a bit lost for a moment, but he quickly followed the others when Ilhoon nudged him gently. The blonde had been watching the older twin’s strange behaviour even before they started their journey, and it bothered him a bit because he wasn’t sure if Kyungsoo is ready to defend himself later.

“Hey, are you okay?” Ilhoon’s voice was low but loud enough to make Kyungsoo’s eyes widen. He nodded his head almost too quickly for Ilhoon to believe his answer.

“Don’t lie to me, Kyungsoo.” He narrowed his eyes and the older twin s