Yongguk’s POV:

The two watch guards let out a grunt in pain before falling lifelessly to the ground. ChangJo and Minho looked at each other, nodding when they verified the men unconscious before reporting back to Jin.

We all gathered under a big sycamore tree, blending perfectly into the darkness of the shadows with our black suits. I scanned the team, quickly counting all the members that were present. There were exactly 30 people—no one was missing.

Jin too was wearing black, but the large silver cross necklace that hung around his neck made him stick out from the rest of us. He began to lead us into the cemetery gates the moment midnight hit.

We kept walking and walking and walking. After a while, I began to wonder if we even came here with a purpose, and at that moment, Jin stopped.

Turning to face everyone, he scanned the crowd with his narrowing eyes.

“Good, everyone is here,” he said aloud, pleased with what he saw.

“Now, the examination will begin,” he announced strictly before standing aside, revealing two tombstones placed right next to each other.

My heart stopped when I read the names carved on the hard stone.

Lee SeungWon and Park MinYung.

“Everyone,” Jin instructed, “Begin digging up these two graves.”

My eyes widened in shock as everyone casually began kneeling on the ground, clawing at the earth. Obviously, no one knew why Jin had specifically chose these two graves except for me.

N-No. I can’t do this. This is completely—

“Bang, what are you waiting for?” Jin eyed me questioningly.

“Yongguk-ah, p-promise me you’ll protect Natalie,” Mrs. MinYung pleaded painfully as streaks of tears continued to run down her bloodstained cheeks.

“Please be her guardian angel… Do whatever it takes to protect her,” she begged pitifully as she cupped a shaking hand onto my cheek, wiping away my tears. I grabbed ahold of it, hoping that maybe I could keep her from leaving.

“Ne…” I whispered. “I promise. I will protect her… I-I love you Umma…” I croaked out. For the first time, I took the risk of allowing myself to call her by the sound of ‘mother.’

She smiled proudly at me and cried out, “Umma loves you too, Yongguk.”

Her hand suddenly slipped lifelessly out of mine.

She was gone.

“Ah, sorry,” I mumbled before kneeling down on the ground along with the others and forcing myself to rip apart the dirt while I bit back my tears.

I promised that I would protect Natalie, and I had to stay alive to do so. No matter under what circumstances, I had to keep my word.

Forgive me, Umma and Appa. Forgive me, Natalie.

As I worked, I felt Jin carefully observing me—especially me—causing me to feel more and more pressured by the second. By the time the decaying remaining of the skeletons surfaced the earth, my fingers were completely numb along with the rest of my body.

Jin quickly browsed over the group once more before clapping.

“Great job everyone. You’ve done well today. Great job to whoever betrayed me as well. You did a great job at veiling yourself. But don’t worry, it’ll get harder to do than this,” he warned. “You can all go now.”

Everyone began making their way back to the entrance while I slugged behind. As I walked, I could feel Jin’s eyes on me. I knew he was beginning to grow suspicious towards me. If I had pondered for any longer earlier, he would’ve probably killed me already.

If I didn’t want to get caught, I had to be a lot more careful than this.

“Good job, Bang,” Jin gently patted my back. I nodded tiredly at him.

Before he walked past me, I caught a glimpse of distrust in his eyes.

Natalie’s POV:

I checked the time on my phone. It was 4AM.

I tossed and turned about four million times before completely giving up on sleeping. Frustrated, I went out to the kitchen and got myself a glass of water. Still wide-awake, I was bored to death. There was nothing on TV entertaining enough for a girl like me—awake at four in the morning.

Suddenly, I remembered the small chest box in the hidden room in my basement.

With a flashlight in one hand and a lighter on the other, I nervously went down to my basement, determined to find the switch that lead to the entrance of the hidden room.

After hours of searching, I gave up and sat down on the floor.

“Where could it be…? It has to be in here somewhere,” I muttered under my breath before resting my head onto the wall.

Huh... Weird... Why do I feel as if something's—

Unexpectedly, the gaping entrance appeared on the ground, causing me to jump in surprise. I looked behind me and realized that there was a small button that I suspected was primarily supposed to be hidden behind the chest nearby. I assumed Yongguk probably forgot to place it back where it was on our last visit here.

I carefully stepped down the staircase and began lighting up the four candles. The room lit up dimly, welcoming me in once again. I walked over to the chest and picked it up—surprised at how light it was—and brought it over to the table.

I opened it to find a blank piece of paper lying on the top. Taking it out, I flipped it back and forth several times, hoping to find a clue or a note, but there was completely nothing on it. I placed it aside and began rummaging through the rest of the box.

I found an old-fashioned pocket knife, a pocket watch, two black masks that were identical to Yongguk’s, and two black body suits that I assumed to be my parents’ old uniform from when they were still part of Children of Fang. At the very bottom of the box, I found a large silver bracelet with a geometric shape bead in the center, and I slipped it on.

I took one last look in the box, hoping that there was something left in there. Sadly, there wasn’t. Disappointed that I wasn’t able to find anything interesting like in movies, I carefully placed everything inside the chest and tucked it back in its original place before leaving back upstairs.

After work at the bookstore, I bought two bouquets of fresh carnations before heading off to the cemetery.

When I arrived, I spotted a few policemen chattering near the front gates.

“I don’t know. We’ll continue the investigation tomorrow,” I heard one of them say.

As I approached the gates, one of the police officers stopped me.

“Hello miss, we are currently under investigation. Please stay away from the yellow tape. Otherwise, have a lovely day,” he informed me before allowing me to enter. I nodded politely and smiled.

Making my way towards my destination, I noticed two graves that had been completely destroyed. Yellow tape stamped with the repeating word ‘caution’ lined the area, indicating that it should not be touched. The skeletons were dug up from under the ground, and the tombstones were no longer standing.

I wonder what happened…

As I came closer, I realized that the two tombstones were extremely close to where my parents’ tombstones were… So close that—

No… It can’t be…

When I finally came into view, I realized that those graves were my parents’. I dropped the bouquet of flowers in horror and slowly inched closer, still unable to take the truth.

But there was no use in denying it.

On the dirt-stained stones were carved the names of my loving parents— Lee SeungWon and Park MinYung.