In just a short moment, the six of them have reached Dreamscape once again. But they have yet to arrive at their desired destination.

‘So… whose dream are we in right now?’ Jaehwan asked as he did a head count to make sure everyone was here.

Wonshik shrugged.

Suddenly, their surroundings began to whirl into a different dimension. The strong breeze brought them into a room. Someone’s house it seems.

They were in a room that was dimly lit and surrounded by papers and books. Strange circles were drawn on the floor with chalk as well.

‘This…’ the Dark Taekwoon noticed it first.

‘You know where we are?’ Jaehwan looked at him.

‘Yeah. We’re within the Witch’s Den.’

‘Witch?’ The others gulped.

‘Or the Witch, Ravi’s cottage to be exact. This is where he lived when he was exiled to the Underworld after failing to steal the Sun from the Heavens.’

‘My previous life?’ Wonshik became interested and started to look around for clues of his past.

‘We may have gotten lucky,’ the Dark Taekwoon commented.

‘What do you mean?’ Hongbin asked.

‘Even though this is Kim Wonshik’s Dreamscape, we’re still inside of the Underworld. That means, we’re close by.’

‘To where Taekwoon-hyung and Hakyeon-hyung is!’ Hyuk exclaimed.

The Dark Taekwoon nodded.

‘As long as the link between us and the two of them are strong enough, we should be able to connect straight into the Ruler’s mansion.’

‘Then we must hurry,’ the Dark Hakyeon said.

The rest agreed and rushed straight outside of the cottage.

But as soon as they opened the door, a strong burning heat hit them. The Dark Taekwoon pushed the others back inside and slammed the door shut.

‘Dammit!’ He yelled.

‘What the heck was that?! It hurts!’ Jaehwan tried to rub the burning heat from his cheeks. The pain was still itching his skin even though it was only for a split second.

‘I forgot we’re in the middle of the swamps.’ The Dark one said.

‘What should we do?’ the Dark Hakyeon asked. ‘We can’t just rush out there aimlessly, we’ll be burned alive before we can even exit these lands.’

The members contemplated and started to look around for a way to leave safely.

As soon as they remembered they were within Dreamscape, a world of possibilities, both Hyuk and Jaehwan tried to cast a barrier to protect them. But as soon as they tried to step outside again, the barrier started to melt. Their powers were just not strong enough for the tremendous heat emitting from the empty swamps.

Even both the Dark ones were struggling to figure a way out.

‘You guys, stop.’ Wonshik said as he started to look through a pile of books on the desk.

‘What is it?’ Hyuk asked curiously.

‘Give me a bit of time. I might be able to find something in these books.’

‘You sure?’

‘You’re forgetting that this is my Dreamscape. If this place is really the place of my previous life, I should be able to control it more than you guys. Just give me a minute.’

The members stepped back and gave Wonshik some space to look around. They were unable to read the scriptures of any of the books but the rapper on the other hand, was able to make out the strange writings. Eventually, Wonshik found something in one of the books and grabbed a chalk from nearby.

He started to draw on the floor with the chalk as replica of a drawing from one of the books. He concentrated on the writings of the Witch Ravi, and soon, a barrier was formed.

‘Get in,’ he told the others.

The members listened and followed him closely behind.

Wonshik took a step forward carefully while repeating the words from the book over and over again.

‘Will this thing really hold?’ Jaehwan gulped in uncertainty.

‘Let’s believe in Wonshik,’ Hongbin said.

Knowing very well that concentration was the key to Dreamscape, Wonshik thought of nothing but making sure him and the others made it out safely from the swamps. Soon, the members found themselves outside of the burning swamps and a safe distance away from the heat.

‘That’s enough now, Wonshik-ah.’ The Dark Taekwoon gave the rapper a tap on the shoulder so that the other can finally relax.

Wonshik broke out the spell and the barrier disappeared. The instant the barrier was gone, the rapper became exhausted and grasping for air. The spell took more of his energy than he thought it would.

‘Let’s take a small break until Wonshik catches his breath,’ the Dark Hakyeon suggested.

Everyone agreed.

~

After the short break was over, the boys were back on their feet and making their way into the center of the Underworld in order to find their two oldest members.

‘I definitely don’t like this place, no matter how many times we come here.’ Jaehwan shivered at their eerie and silent surroundings. Once again, the town had zero presence aside from themselves yet the silence was more terrifying than anything they could imagine.

‘Agree.’ Hyuk nodded and stayed close to the vocalist.

‘I’m amazed you two were able to stay around here for so long. If it was me, I’d gone insane!’ Jaehwan said.

‘You kind of… get used to it,’ the Dark Hakyeon smiled nervously.

‘This is the world I was born in so I’m already accustomed to it.’ The Dark Taekwoon told them.

‘But now that you have a taste of the mortal realm, what do you think of it?’ Hyuk asked.

‘Both worlds have their own greatness. Sure the human world is intriguing and full of wonders but so does the Underworld. Those from the outside would not be used to its strangeness and horror-like surroundings, but this is a place where those from below are born into and used to. It’s our home. We just have a different way of living.’

‘I see.’

‘The Underworld has a system of its own. We had our own laws and rules where we follow by. Of course, the strongest of the Underworld is the one with full control and his words are a must but that’s just how we survive in this place.’

The Dark Taekwoon continued to tell the members of the wonders of the Underworld itself and after his stories, the members grew a bit more comfortable within this chilling place.

‘Hakyeon-hyung! Taekwoon-hyung! We’re here for you!’ Hyuk shouted loudly as they approached the Ruler’s mansion.

But there was no reply.

Silence.

Empty.

The members followed the Dark Taekwoon closely behind and making sure that they were sticking close to one another for safety until they find their two missing members.

The dark hallways were still too creepy, as if something could jump out at any minute when they least expected it.

‘As great as you told us about the Underworld, I still don’t like this place,’ Jaehwan shivered.

‘Let’s not waste any more time. We need to see if we can find those two immediately before time runs out,’ the Dark Taekwoon said. His time was still ticking away.

The six of them walked together in search for Hakyeon and Taekwoon but neither was responding to their calls and nowhere to be found. The halls felt like a never-ending labyrinth and each room they came across was empty. The more time they wasted through the hallways, the more impatient they grew as the Dark Taekwoon could disappear at any time.

That means, their vocalist would disappear as well.

‘Taekwoon-hyung! Hakyeon-hyung!’ the youngest called out in distress again.

‘Dammit, where could they be? Are we sure that my part of Dreamscape is connected with Hakyeon-hyung’s?’ Wonshik started to doubt.

‘It should be. No, this has to be! I’m sure of it. If it didn’t, it would not be so true to the actual mansion within Hakyeon’s dreams,’ the Dark Taekwoon said.

‘He’s right. This is definitely the same mansion,’ the Dark Hakyeon agreed. ‘But just where are those two?’

‘Stay close and let’s continue looking. We can’t give up yet.’ Jaehwan said, ‘stay close to me okay Kong-ah.’

Just as Jaehwan was about to grab the younger’s hand who was following from behind him, he realized someone was missing from the group.

‘Kong-ah?!’ He panicked.

The others looked behind in an instant from Jaehwan’s call but realized that Hongbin was gone from the group!

‘Where is Hongbin?!’ the Dark Hakyeon panicked as well.

‘I don’t know! He was just next to me!’ Jaehwan got worried.

‘What should we do?’

‘Calm down,’ the Dark Taekwoon said. ‘Focus.’

‘But! This is his first time here inside of Dreamscape. He’s a mortal remember?! What if something bad happened to him?’

‘Stay calm. We’ll look for him. He’s stronger than he looks. It’s true that he’s a mortal since the beginning of time but he wasn’t a powerless human. He has also gone through many rebirths with the Gods permitting him to retain his memories of his previous lives. He’s also trained under the witch, Ravi. Even now, even the God’s messenger, Kwon Soo-ah is relying on him as her guidance.’

The Dark Taekwoon tried to reassure the distressed members. He had faith that Hongbin was safe and knew well that the younger could not be as powerless as he seems. He believes that Hongbin would be able to make it out safely. The Lee Hongbin he knows of is neither light nor darkness but rather, a balance of the worlds.

Even the Heavens and Hell would not be able to manipulate him as they please.