Nothing too grossly graphic here but just warning about some violence. boop.

CHAPTER THREE | Protector

“Tell me, what happened to the king? Was he properly deposed of?” Jeongin’s uncle was lounging on the boy’s throne, feeling a rush of power within the seat. He wore a sinister smile and twisted the glass of wine intertwined in his fingers so that the red liquid spun in circles. His assistant stood at his side with arms folded together, staring down the solider knelt before them with his blazing red eyes.

“Sir—”

“Your Majesty.” Lord Jaeyong corrected him.

“Your Majesty…” the soldier bowed his head, feeling hesitant to give him the news. “The King was taken by a demon. We’re not sure if he is still alive or not.”

Lord Jaeyong stopped stirring his wine and his eyes narrowed. “A demon you say?”

“Yes. The lady assassin you gave him to was nearly killed by him. He took him soon after.” The soldier reported.

“Well, if it was just another demon then the boy will end up dead anyways.” His uncle said with a content grin and took a celebratory sip of his wine.

“What kind of demon was he?” The assistant suddenly asked.

The soldier was caught off guard by the question but thought back to what he had seen. “Crows. He had a ton of crows at his control. That is all that I can say about him.”

Lord Jaeyong waited curiously to see what his assistant was digging at. The fact that a demon had the young king in its clutches surely meant the end for him—but still, he was beginning to feel uneasy.

“My Lord—I mean, your majesty, I don’t believe the King is dead.” The man informed him, slightly turning his head to speak to his higher up.

“What do you mean?” Jaeyong gripped the glass tightly and frowned. His left brow quirked upright at his question. The soldiers also looked to him for clarification.

“If that demon is the one I’m thinking of, he’s not going to lay a finger on the boy.”

“What? What kind of demon would protect a human? And for what purpose?” Lord Jaeyong shouted while slamming his fists down on the armrest of the throne.

His assistant lowered his head and glared at the soldier. “He’s a special breed. I would have to see him myself to make sure, but I truly believe that the king is still out there.”

Lord Jaeyong gritted his teeth in outrage and tossed the wine glass on the ground so it shattered into a million little shards. “Damnit! I need that boy dead! I am the king now and I won’t have him ruining this for me! Spread the word through the dark market for his capture. I want him brought back to me so I can kill him myself!” He demanded, visibly fuming.

“Yes, your Majesty! And, what about General Bang Chan and officer Kim Woojin? Should we send word about their arrest as well?”

The man took a deep breath and exhaled through his nose. He thought for a moment and then shook his head. “Tail them. I’m sure they’ll lead us straight to him.”

“Understood, your majesty.” The soldier crossed his arm over his chest and offered his lord a bow before standing up and marching out of the room to start his mission.

Lord Jaeyong sighed in aggravation and tapped his fingers against the throne. Here he was feeling so triumphant and comfortable, but that boy was no doubt a crafty one. He reminded him of a little cockroach that wouldn’t died no matter how many times he’d tried to squish him.

“Curse him.” He growled. “He even cost me my best soldier. Who would have thought that Chan was a demon?” He rolled his temples with his fingers in an attempt to expel the headache that was quickly growing in his brain.

“Zrox.”

His attendant bowed his head. “Yes, your majesty?”

“The woman. Is she still alive? Alive enough to talk?”

“I do believe so.” The man answered with a deeper bow of the head.

“Good. I want answers from her. I don’t care how you do it. Torcher her if you must! But I want to know everything she knows about the king.” He tried to suppress his anger the best he could for the sake of his sanity. “I have a feeling she’s keeping secrets from me.”

“Yes, your majesty.” His attendant straightened up and turned to leave but was stopped.

“Wait—“ Jaeyong raised his hand to regain his attention.

Zrox waited patiently for his command.

“I want you to trail behind Chan and Woojin as well. Make sure you leave a tracker on them so they won’t get away too easily.”

“As you wish.” Zrox bowed and stepped out of the room.

The man traveled to the outside of the kingdom walls where the forest had grown thick. His eyes began to glow red and a blue light zigzagged up his arms in a lightning-like formation. His hands filled with static electricity and he plunged them into the ground. Waves of energy tore through the soil and the earth began to crack and slide open. Grotesque, undead creatures resembling canines of some kind crawled out of the gaps bringing a putrid stench along with them. They growled and hissed, growing more and more ravenous by the second.

“Find the two soldiers,” He removed a cloth from his cloak that had Chan’s scent and tossed it to the canines. The creatures tackled it and ripped it to pieces in a savage instant.

“Go.” He pointed towards the forest and the canines raced each other to start the hunt.

◅♕♕♕▻

As Jeongin’s eyes slowly opened, the room felt like it was spinning. His whole world kept tilting in different directions, making him feel lightheaded and nauseous. He pressed the palm of his hand against his forehead and groaned.

He could hear rustling trees and birds chirping over his loud, heavy breathing. Beads of sweat had formed on his forehead and neck.

His sore body jerked up and a folded wet cloth fell into his lap from the top of his head. His brain was throbbing, and the room was still moving in circles.

Jeongin shook his head to fix his vision. With a little focus, he could make out the small cabin he was in that’s entirety was no bigger than his own room back at the castle.

Sunlight spilled in through the glass windows and lit up the wooden flooring, casting a bright glare that stung at the young boy’s eyes before he moved to avoid it.

“Where am I?” Jeongin croaked, his throat was dry and raspy.

Then it hit him.

Memories of his uncle’s banquet came flooding back to him, and panic quickly set in. His first instincts were to run. He didn’t know where he was or who might be nearby, but all he could think to do was flee. Maybe he’d even find Chan?

The young boy got up from the bed and tried to ignore the sudden rush of pain that went from his neck down into his chest. He cringed slightly, but gained enough strength to push forward, exiting the cabin and darting off into the forest.

He didn’t take too much time to investigate his surroundings, but from what he did see for a split second was a rushing river.

The area he was in was bright and full of lush greenery that gradually became darker and darker as he ran, not knowing where he was headed.

Jeongin ran and ran, snagging branches and rocks as he went.

Suddenly he stopped, panting heavily and pivoting on his feet to see which direction he should go in next. Everything looked the same. He couldn’t even distinguish which direction he had come from in the first place. He was lost and feeling increasingly overwhelmed.

A strong breeze swirled through the forest, whipping at his loose clothing and causing him to close his eyes in discomfort. His body tensed, and as he opened his eyes, a loud cawing of a crow made him jump.

His heart skipped a beat and he looked up on a tree branch to see a large, demonic looking crow staring down at him with its four round eyes. It nibbled at the feathers of its wing then cawed again, leading Jeongin to slowly back away. It was no regular crow. It must have meant there was a demon nearby, and the thought made his body go numb with fear.

As he backed up, he was unaware of the person looming behind him until it was too late. His back met with someone’s chest and he stiffened.

His eyes widened and a million thoughts raced through his mind at once. Should he just make a break for it? Or fight back? He wasn’t sure, but before he could make a choice, two hands grasped his arms and he was forcefully spun to face the person behind him.

Blood pumping fast, Jeongin closed his eyes and swung his hands, nails ready to rip into anything they could touch, but his wrists were immediately seized.

He reopened his eyes in shock and his breath hitched at the sight of a boy, seemingly close to his own age, glaring down at him with pitched black eyes and a blank expression.

He was actually quite gorgeous to say the least, and Jeongin was momentarily lost in his intimidating gaze.

Then Jeongin’s face hardened and he tried to wrench his wrists away. “Let me go!” He hissed, pulling with all his might, but the boy didn’t budge. He didn’t even look fazed when the king resorted to kicking at his legs.

“Come with me. You’re not safe here.” The mysterious boy said, his voice monotoned and emotionless. He brought Jeongin’s hands down to his side and let go of one of his wrists so he could turn to lead him back to the cabin.

“No! I said let me go!” Jeongin hollered, using his freed hand to try and pry the guy’s hand from his captive wrist.

The boy was still unfazed, dragging Jeongin along with him with a crazy amount of strength. He was sure that if he wanted too, he could snap his wrist like it was nothing.

“You’ll attract more demons wandering out here. You must go back.” He warned him.

“Let me go!” Jeongin shouted again, and this time, the boy did what he was told. He wasn’t expecting him to comply, and went stumbling back to the ground, scratching his arm on a sharp, jutting branch.

The boy whipped his head down to look at Jeongin, eyes slightly rounded, and a powerful breeze suddenly blew over them.

“We need to hurry!” The boy said, more urgently now, grabbing Jeongin’s wrist and lifting him off the ground.

The cawing of crows brought the king’s attention to the appearance of a small group of black birds that circled above them.

Then out of nowhere, a loud, monstrous growl echoed through the trees, and Jeongin’s eyes searched the forest for its source.

“Don’t look back!”

Jeongin’s head jerked forward at his words and he saw the cabin coming into sight. It was a small, rundown building right on the edge of the riverbed. A heavily flowing waterfall was stationed closely behind it.

As they neared the cabin, the boy swung Jeongin ahead of him, slingshotting him through a thick forcefield that rippled as he entered it. He fell to his knees and peered over his shoulder to see the boy standing outside of the invisible forcefield, face to face with an ogre-looking creature three times his size. It’s one, bulging, red eye, looked him up and down.

“Where is it? Where is that smell coming from?” Its low, thunderous voice vibrated the ground as it spoke, and its hot breath blew over the boy’s entire body.

“It’s already gone. If you were smart then you’ll leave now.” He answered, standing his ground calmly.

The ogre sniffed him and breathed out slowly. Jeongin could smell the stench of its breath from where he was on the ground and covered his nose.

“You’re lying. The scent it still so strong.” The ogre