The three boys from Gongju wandered in the enchanted forest. They had been walking through it for hours. The atmosphere here was tense. The ice-cold air stung in their lungs and for some reason they all felt exhausted.

“How much longer? Where is this big city? My feet already hurt, and I am tired!”, Taehyung complained and yawned.

His body longed very much for sleep.

“Well, that is not my issue. There is no time to waste, besides, we are not allowed to fall asleep in this half of the forest, otherwise we will never wake up again. And I really mean NEVER AGAIN. We die if we do so.”, Doyoung explained annoyed.

This is the first time he had spoken to the others. Taehyung and Taeil had silently followed their new unsympathetic comrade on their way to Daejeon.

“And why would we die? Does that have anything to do with the forest?”, Taeil asked curiously.

Taehyung tried to keep up with him while Mithra slept soundly in his arms.

“Did your guard not already warn you about this?”, Doyoung questioned the boys and waved his right hand as if he were mocking their lack of information, “Anyway, I will explain it to you guys quickly. This forest, at least this half, as far as I know is enchanted. The elders of Gongju got it... How should I say it? Cursed? Yes, they put a curse on it.”

Taehyung and Taeil listened carefully as they followed the older one.

“This part of the forest is where the life energy of people is withdrawn. Originally this was for the Dokkaebi, to keep them away from the kingdom. But the elders made an exception. Hence the curse works on every kind of person. We can stay a little longer in this enchanted forest because fighters, guards and people of special bloodlines related to the elders have more energy than people without skills. You know, ‘normal’ humans are weaker in every way.”, Doyoung informed the two, “Still, if we fall asleep here nothing can save us. Because while we sleep, we become an easy target as our bodies and mind become unprotected. This forest feeds on our life energies. Even right now it is up from us, that is why V feels exhausted and tired already.”

Taehyung tilted his head. He became curious and worried too.

“Where is the safe half of the forest?”, he asked tired and a little scared.

“When we cross the white bridge over the river”, Doyoung answered.

He kept going ahead and did not look back at the two friends a single time. He really was in a hurry.

“And what about the other danger? The one with the gigantic wolves?”, Taeil wondered if the older boy knew about this matter.

Doyoung suddenly stopped. He turned around and looked at Taeil a little baffled and shook his head.

“Uh… ‘wolves’? You are pretty ignorant.”, he stated annoyed then turned away and kept walking, “Hmm. Unfortunately, I also only know a little about it. The forests belong to the Beast. Maybe we are lucky and meet one...”

Taeil was a bit disappointed with his answer, but at least they knew more about the enchanted half of the forest.

“How long does it take to get to this bridge?”, Taehyung asked impatient.

Doyoung stopped again and turned to face them. The other two stopped immediately.

“What is it?”, Taehyung and Taeil asked as if from one mouth.

Doyoung pointed with his thumb over his shoulder. They followed his gesture and saw it. The white bridge behind the unsympathetic boy. Taehyung's mouth rolled in a smile.

“Finally! Let us get out of the stupid forest!”, he cheered happily and jumped.

Taeil was also happy and laughed at his friend, who had suddenly regained full strength. Mithra woke up to the cheers. Doyoung did not seem to be amazed.

“Hey, we are lucky not to meet the Beast, but crossing the bridge is also not that easy.”, he interrupted the two of them.

Taehyung and Taeil exchanged glances. Doyoung turned away from them and walked to the bridge. He stopped shortly before it. He put his hand on the smashed barrier. Anybody must have crossed the bridge before them.

Was that a burn mark on the floor?

“There are soul-fishes in this river. They are waiting for us to cross the bridge.”, Doyoung added and wiped away the burn mark with his feet.

The boy was very knowledgeable.

“You mean fish like piranhas?”, Taehyung compared and put his index finger on his chin with a raised eyebrow.

Doyoung replied brusquely: “No, piranhas do not desire your soul. Soul-fishes do. They eat your soul and leave behind your body. Your body swims like an empty vessel downstream and probably ends up as feed for other animals.”

The two boys nodded to his words and looked at the river. They stood there in front of the white bridge, and they dared not to cross it. They argued for a long time about who should be the first one to cross it. At some point, Taeil suggested that his best friend should freeze the river. Doyoung gave him a quick look. He was somewhat surprised and then turned to Taehyung who still held Mithra in his arms. Taehyung was not ready for it. He felt a little overwhelmed. The idea came out of nowhere.

“Um... I- I do not know. Should we not rather refrain from using our abilities?”, he tried to talk himself out of the matter and briefly glared at his best friend.

Taeil shrugged and smiled at him.

“Well then, get started!”, Doyoung demanded and took Mithra from the overwhelmed boy.

It was a quick moment, but Doyoung’s hands accidentally brushed the fingers of Taehyung, the boy with the ice blue Bujeok on the wrist. He briefly looked Taehyung in the eyes and quickly lowered his gaze immediately. Taehyung caught his brief glance, winced, and frowned by the small accidental touch. The body temperature of the older boy was not normal. He literally glowed. Doyoung’s purple eyes with white pupils seemed scary.

Taehyung gulped nodded involuntarily, finally stepped closer to the white bridge and took a stable position.

“I can try. I have never frozen something that big but… I can try…”, he muttered insecure.

Taeil sat down excitedly on the cold and damp ground and always kept his best friend in the eye. Doyoung put Mithra back on his shoulder and kept a safe distance from the bridge. He crossed his arms, leaned against a tree, and tilted his head with a serious expression.

Taehyung took a deep breath, closed his ice blue eyes, and stretched out his right hand to the river. With his left he wrapped his fingers around his Bujeok. Quietly and slowly the whole forest began to rustle. A strong breeze of wind went in all directions from Taehyung's body. An ice blue aura enveloped him. His feet crushed the hard forest ground. Branches and leaves broke. Cracks and holes appeared. His surroundings shook. Taeil held his breath in excitement while Doyoung wordlessly watched what was happening around him. Taehyung gritted his teeth and slowly opened his eyes. The red rings of his pupils glowed. Thick veins formed on his temples. Beads of sweat dripped from his forehead. He concentrated all his energy into this one blow and took another deep breath. Then suddenly an ice blue beam shot out of his bare palm followed by a weak flame. The pressure of the ice beam instantly pushed Taehyung back in a flash. He crashed into a tree trunk with a loud bang and nearly broke it down. The entire river froze up to both ends. Taeil felt that the temperature on the ground of the forest also changed. It froze everywhere except below Taeil's body. Doyoung’s surroundings stayed the same at a diameter of five meters. His high body temperature saved him from the cold. The last drops of sweat dripped from Taehyung’s forehead, when he suddenly became queasy, closed his eyes, and breathless fell to the ground. The glow of his Bujeok went out, the quake stopped. The ice blue aura disappeared, and everything fell silent. No more rustles, no more wind, no more cracking.

Back to his senses, Taeil immediately jumped up and hurried to his best friend. He was amazed by the abilities but also worried about his condition. From a distance with his arms still crossed, Doyoung checked the frozen river, then turned around and looked back at the enchanted area. The whole forest looked like a single ice landscape. Taehyung not had not only frozen the river, but the entire forest. The safe and the enchanted half.

“Were there flames in addition to the ice beam?”, Doyoung whispered to himself and seemed concerned, “I need to be careful around him.”

He turned around and looked back at the river in amazement. Meanwhile Taeil tried to wake up his friend, but Taehyung’s consciousness was long gone.

“V? Can you hear me, V? You- You cannot fall asleep here!”, Taeil said worriedly to him and slapped him gently.

No reaction. Taehyung's body was like a block. Freezing and rigid with the cold.

“Doyoung! Why are you standing there? He is freezing to death! Come here and help me!”, Taeil shouted.

The older boy rushed to them at once. With every step he took the ice under his feet melted. The closer he got to the boys he felt more and more the cold that Taehyung’s body leaked.

“Here, touch him...”, Taeil demanded and lifted his best friend's hand.

Doyoung shook his head. He did not need to touch the unconscious boy as he felt the cold coming from him anyway.

“He is not really 'freezing'. Your friend is hypothermic but that is just his body temperature thanks to his Bujeok. It will not kill him”, he assured unimpressed.

Taeil frowned and roared at him: “He is like a block of ice, you idiot! Help me carry him over immediately! We absolutely have to warm him up!”

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