Despite all of Yixing’s warnings and tries to reason with her, Minji didn’t change her habit of going on hunts with Tao. The free time she had this Saturday would be used to check out a popular hiking area where some humans had previously vanished under weird circumstances. In Tao’s opinion, it had to have a supernatural reason. Perhaps the high-class demon they were after was responsible for it, and even if that wasn’t the case, Minji and Tao still wanted to make sure that nobody else would be hurt.

They met up at the edge of the woods on a parking lot where the hiking trail began, leading up the mountain. It was a rainy day and the sky was clouded, a fresh breeze playing with Minji’s ponytail. She had gotten used to wearing her hair like this to prevent it from getting in the way.

“Are you ready to leave?” she said as she walked up to Tao and he nodded, grinning cheekily.

“I’m always ready!”

She snorted amusedly and shot him a look. “Last time, you overslept and I had to call a thousand times to wake your lazy ! Seriously, I have never heard of such a lazy demon hunter,” she teased.

“Hey, I’m very successful at my job, being a half-demon has many perks,” he replied, not mad at her for pointing out the obvious. “Besides, sleeping a lot is very healthy.”

“Exactly what a lazy bum would say,” she said, smiling brightly. “Did you pay a visit to your friend yesterday, by the way?”

“Yeah, we set up his new computer and ended up eating a ton of candy.”

“Sounds like you were rewarded generously,” she giggled while they followed the trail into the forest, passing the treeline. It got a little darker in this area and out of habit, she conjured a ball of light to illuminate the rocky path in front of them.

“What about you?” he asked.

“Oh, I didn’t do anything, honestly. Just stayed home and that’s it,” she said.

“You were moping around again,” he summed up and hit the nail on the head, seeing through her palliating words. “You should have called me! My friend and I wouldn’t have minded your company.”

“I don’t want to be a burden, Tao, but thanks for the offer.”

“You’re not a burden!” he grumbled and crossed his arms, his almond-shaped eyes narrowing in exasperation. “You’re a great partner, don’t sell yourself short,” he added in a softer tone.

“Thanks, I guess,” she mumbled sheepishly, keeping her eyes on the trail. The woods were quiet and barely a sound was heard other than the occasional pitter-patter of the rain. It unsettled her and felt unnatural since she was used to hearing the happy chirping of birds in the treetops and the laughter of other hikers who passed by.

The area appeared to be deserted, but she was convinced that they would find who or what they were looking for if they went deeper into the woods. That was their only option anyway since she doubted their target would show itself without a good reason.

“How long do you think this will take?” she asked, holding in a yawn. Work had been tiring lately which resulted in her feeling drained constantly. If she was honest with herself, she should have asked Tao to postpone this undertaking to another day. However, she had decided to get it over with before even more people vanished. She had chugged an energy drink earlier and hoped its effect would last for a while.

“Probably all day,” he answered and sighed. “I would prefer lying in bed right now, but this monster has to be stopped.”

“Agreed,” she said, letting her gaze move over bushes and trees that they passed. The cold and the rain made this undertaking much more uncomfortable than it had to be, but it couldn’t be helped.

They walked on for another fifteen minutes without spotting anything out of the ordinary, their only company the faint rain that fell on their heads and shoulders. They both wore raincoats that protected them, nonetheless, they would have preferred better weather for this.

“I’m hungry,” Tao groaned suddenly, pulling a face.

“You’re such a baby,” Minji retorted teasingly. “I think I have chocolate bars left in my car.”

“Great; cause your car is like a forty-minute walk away from us,” he grumbled.

“Didn’t you eat breakfast?”

“Nah, I wanted to sleep in. No time for that.”

“You are unbelievable,” she commented, having a hard time hiding her amusement at his grumpy expression. “Do you even need food? You’re a half-demon.”

He raised an eyebrow. “So? I love eating and sweets are the best thing ever. Why would I not eat them?”

“Dieting must be hard for you.”

“Oh, you have no idea! It’s impossible to take a pass on candy, but luckily my work is keeping me fit.”

“I can imagine,” she said.

They walked on until they reached a fork, the trail splitting up in two different directions—East and West.

“This is annoying,” he sighed and rolled his eyes.

“We could split up,” she suggested and earned a death glare.

“Suuure, like those stupid people in horror movies? The ones who die first? Don’t be ridiculous, Minji. We’re staying together. It’s safer.”

“Why are you comparing this to a horror movie? We’re able to use magic, that’s an advantage that idiots in horror movies don’t have. Your analogy is ridiculous if you ask me.”

“You’re too reckless.”

He was right, she was. Ever since the mark had vanished and its protective magic didn’t warn her of impending danger any longer, she had become careless and often acted imprudently. She had always relied on those warning, so much that she felt strange without them. It gave her the illusion that she was never in danger and she constantly needed to remind herself that this wasn’t true.

“I know, I know,” she huffed and put her hands on her hips, stubbornly glaring at him. “View it this way: If we walk together, it will take us forever to cover ground, but if we split up, we’re saving half of the time! That’s a huge advantage. And in case something happens, we still have our phones to call each other and our magic to defend ourselves.”

“Cell phone reception isn’t the best in this area, though,” he grumbled, not liking her idea. “And you’re human, Minji… Humans die so easily.”

“Not like you’re a full demon either,” she retorted sassily, prompting him to roll his eyes.

“You’re missing my point! What I’m trying to say is that I would feel better if we continued to work as a team.”

“How about a compromise? Each of us walks like fifteen minutes in a different direction and if we don’t find our target, we’ll head back and meet up right here, okay? If I’m not here in fifteen minutes, which isn’t going to happen because I’m punctual, then you can go after me,” she explained with a grin.

He groaned and grumbled something under his breath, but in the end, he cracked and complied. “Okay, fine. You’re too damn stubborn,” he said, running his hand through his dark red hair.

“Then it’s a promise! See you later Tao, and don’t fall asleep somewhere!”

“Ugh, shut up!”

He took the western trail while she took the eastern one and soon lost sight of him as she disappeared between the trees.

Unbeknownst to her, she would come to regret her decision very soon. The demon prowling the woods had set his sights on her already, watching her from the shadows as she moved on unsuspectingly. She couldn’t see him; he didn’t allow it. Darkness was his element and hiding in the shadows came as easy to him as breathing.

He watched her amusedly while he thought about how he would kill her. It appeared like she was able to use magic; demon magic at that, and that could only mean one thing. She must have been bonded to a demon before. His lips curled into a snarl as his eyes colored red. Humans like her had to be eradicated—there was no way he would let her live. She was a disgrace to high-class demons like him and her whole existence irked him.

The question was how should he kill her? There were so many options to murder a human that it was very hard to choose. He clicked his tongue annoyedly and watched as she made her way through the dark, rainy forest. She was still oblivious to his presence, her cluelessness amusing him to no end. Chuckling lowly, he followed her like a shadow, the darkness hiding his body.

Maybe he should get it over with soon before it got boring. It was more fun if he played with his victims for a bit before killing them. Deciding to show himself, the shadows around him dispersed and he stepped on the path winding through the trees. His shoes made a noise as he walked and the human woman stiffened hearing it. She turned around and stared at him with wide eyes, instantly summoning her magic to protect herself. Ridiculous.

Minji nearly had a heart attack when she heard a sound behind her, finding herself standing in front of the high-class demon that Tao and she had been looking for. She sensed immensely strong magic radiating off his body and she knew instantly that she was in over her head. Against this demon, she probably wouldn’t stand a chance.

His ruby eyes were glaring at her, filled with hatred and disgust. He curled his lips into a sneer, not hiding his disdain at all. Wearing a black jacket and equally black jeans, he easily melded with the darkness between the trees, so she wasn’t surprised that she hadn’t noticed him earlier. He appeared young, but she knew that looks were deceiving when it came to the true age of a demon.

“Hello human,” he smirked. His strange grey hair stuck out to her, but her gaze was soon drawn by his entrancing yet sinister eyes that glared at her. “Were you looking for me?”

She gritted her teeth, already hating his arrogance and the haughty tone of his voice. It made her skin crawl. “Maybe,” she replied. “Who are you?”

He tilted his head and stayed quiet, observing her like he was contemplating whether it was even worth the trouble to tell her. Letting out a low chuckle, he smirked. “My name is Chängho,” he drawled confidently. “You’re ridiculously stupid, human. What were you thinking, looking for me on your own? Your carelessness is going to be your end.”

As soon as he had spoken, darkness manifested around her body, closing in on her from all sides. It radiated a cold and disturbing aura and made her want to turn and run, but she couldn’t, was trapped. By instinct, she willed her magic into existence, letting it swirl around her body. It glimmered, its golden light dispersing the darkness surrounding her. She shone brightly like a beacon in the dark, the blinding light irking Chängho who glared daggers at her.

“A little bit of light magic won’t save you, human,” he growled, using his magic to shoot a wave of shadows at her that she blocked with a swipe of her arm, making a shield appear in front of her. Stopping his overwhelmingly strong magic cost her more effort than she had expected. Doubts formed in her mind, making her wonder if she could even hold him off until Tao arrived. It couldn’t be long until he would notice something was wrong… she prayed that he would find her soon.

Chängho was fast and attacked her relentlessly, sending shadows her way that she could barely hold off. When he suddenly approached her, hitting her shield with his bare fists, she lost her focus and her magic briefly vanished. That was all it took for him to reach her.

He was ruthless when he hit her. A punch to her stomach, another one to her side had her stumble back. Her human body could not take it, too fragile to withstand his attacks, and her vision disappeared for seconds as pain took over and stole her senses. She screamed, her knees giving out. Falling to the ground, she clutched her stomach with tears burning in her eyes. Looking up at Chängho, seeing his conceited smirk, reminded her of something she had vowed to forget.

The helplessness she experienced and her inability to defend herself made her self-hate return. It was the same as back then. It was the same as all the times she had endured the fits of her ex Dongmin. The memories of the past paralyzed her as an old fear consumed her; her mind going blank. She still wasn’t over it.

In fact, it had only gotten worse after Baëkhyun had left her. She’d started to see herself as a burden and the hopelessness in her heart made her want to give up. Glancing at Chängho, she contemplated if she should stop fighting and let it happen. What was the point of trying when she was meant to fail in the end? She was only prolonging her pain.

Nonetheless, the stubborn part of herself refused to die, and that stubborn part was what forced her to act now. “Tao!” she screamed at the top of her lungs. “T-Tao!”

She got hit by another strong wave of darkness and skidded over the ground, her arms burning when dirt got into her bleeding injuries. Coughing, she attempted to push herself up, but she couldn’t. Her arms were trembling weakly, her body surrendering.

In a last effort to defend herself, she used her light to form a shield in front of her. If only she hadn’t left Tao, maybe they would have been able to defeat this madman, but alone she stood no chance. Frustration made her eyes burn with tears. She always lost. She was always the weaker one. She had lost against Dongmin, she had lost Baëkhyun and now she was losing her life.

Her shield was shattered soon after, the light particles swallowed by shadows.

“Insolent human, did you really think you could use demon magic?” Chängho taunted, coming closer. His form blurred before her eyes. She cursed, the pain becoming overwhelming.

Despair and fear made her heart sink. She knew that she was all alone, there was nobody who would help her. Eyes falling closed, she was swallowed by cold darkness.

Feeling a hand touch her shoulder, she stirred and blinked, opening her eyes to glance at blurry treetops over her. The sky became darker gradually.

“Finally you’re awake! I was ing worried about you!” she heard a familiar voice say. Tilting her head, she spotted Tao kneeling next to her. His red hair stood out to her, and his dark eyes were burning with concern. “Why would you fight him on your own, idiot?” he hissed, his angry words contrasting his actions when he gently brushed a few strands of black hair behind her ear.

“I’m sorry, Tao…” she mumbled, pushing herself up so she was sitting next to him. Her whole body ached, but she was still in one piece which surprised her. When she had lost consciousness, she had been convinced that this was it. She had faced a much too powerful demon on her own. Why would he just let her go?

There was only one plausible explanation in her mind. Her eyes took in the scene of destruction in the forest around her, seeing uprooted and burned trees, craters in the ground.

“You defeated him,” she whispered and looked at Tao with wide eyes. He scrunched his nose, watching her like she lost her marbles.

“What are you talking about? I didn’t fight anyone,” he retorted. “Did you hit your head too hard?”

“B-But… there was a very strong high-class demon, right here! He wanted to kill me, and I’m damn sure he wouldn’t just change his mind and walk away, especially not after I went unconscious,” she said exasperatedly, nervously playing with a strand of her hair as she thought about it. His eyes had been filled with stifling hatred for her, there was no way he would show mercy. Demons did not know mercy.

“Minji, calm down. I’ll tell you everything I know, okay? When I found you around ten minutes ago, you were laying here on the ground. Nobody was anywhere in the vicinity, but I sensed faint traces of strong magic, and the destruction of this place speaks for itself… a terrible fight must have taken happened here. I didn’t know you were so strong, this is something else,” Tao said, looking astonished.

“I did fight the demon, but he overpowered me eventually,” Minji said, her eyes roaming over the damage surrounding her. She was nervous, fearing that something horrible might have happened while she had been unconscious. “I’m not responsible for this chaos here. Someone else must have fought him.” She found the whole situation creepy and shuddered.

“I guess so,” he mumbled, narrowing his eyes before a smirk curled his lips. “Maybe your guardian angel was working overtime?”

She snorted, nudging him playfully. “Sinners don’t have guardian angels, silly.”

“Hey, I was just trying to make light of the situation!”

“How did you find me?” she then asked, curiously gazing at him.

Now he looked confused and stared at her like she had grown a second