Oh, shut up Weatherby

❀ Fics

The Crimson Pact Yan!Saja Boys x Reader

Characterizations | Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20

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✧ Illustrations

The world was swallowed in white.

The blast had been instantaneous, a supernova blooming outward, engulfing the stage, the stadium, and the sky itself. And in those blinding seconds, silence pressed in like a tomb. The singing stopped. The boys dropped from the air, bodies slamming to the ground, knees buckling.

Jinu’s roar tore the stillness apart.

“Y/N!” His voice cracked, raw with terror, his throat breaking on the scream. He clawed at the stage as if he could rip you back from the light, his amber eyes wide with the same horror that had haunted him for centuries. 

This was the vision he had seen…Rumi’s mother’s body splitting apart, burning away into nothingness.

And now it was you. You, who had always been fate’s victim, who he swore he would never let slip away again. He had become Daehyun. He had become the man who could not protect the woman who bore the tether. Powerless. Useless. Watching love dissolve into ash.

Haneul crumpled forward, hands shaking against the floorboards. His chest heaved, every muscle in his body screaming to fly to you, to drag you out of the fire, to take the hit himself. But the light had been too bright, too absolute… there had been no pulling you free. His eyes burned, veins throbbing, and for the first time in lifetimes, his strength meant nothing.

Seoha’s illusions flickered violently around him, scattering like shards of glass. He staggered, lips parted, unable to breathe as the color drained from his face. He had tried to convince himself during the fight that this ritual would save you, that he could weave hope like another one of his sweet lies… but no magic could disguise this grief. His eyes brimmed with tears he couldn’t blink away, his chest tight with the weight of losing you by your own choice.

Seungho slammed a clawed hand into the floor, wood splintering beneath the blow. His voice was a guttural snarl, but his eyes, sharp, red-rimmed, betrayed the panic beneath. He had sworn if he couldn’t have you, no one would. But this wasn’t him losing you to someone else. This was worse. This was you gone forever. His body shook as the rage drained, leaving only raw devastation.

Hwimori howled, the sound unearthly, the beast inside him mourning with primal grief. His massive form shuddered, ears pressed flat, eyes wide with panic and pain. The tether threads burned crimson in his chest but felt suddenly hollow, empty. He thrashed, tearing at the floor with his claws, as if he could claw open the light itself to drag you back.

The weight of their grief pressed like chains against the stage.

Mira and Zoey stared from across the circle, blades still in hand, but lowered, eyes wide at the sight of the boys’ anguish. It was written in every shake of their bodies, every scream and sob.

For so long, Huntrix had painted demons as incapable of true love, of feeling anything but hunger and obsession. But here, they saw no monsters…only men broken open by despair.

Mira’s throat tightened, her heart aching with sympathy despite everything. Zoey’s lips trembled as she looked at them, at Jinu especially, his body wracked with sobs. Was this what love was, even for demons?

Off to the side, Rumi stood frozen. Her pulse thundered in her ears, hands trembling at her sides. It couldn’t have failed. It couldn’t. They had followed everything… every line of her father’s journal, every instruction. She had believed so strongly that this time would be different.

But what if she was wrong? What if her interference, her insistence, had led to your destruction? Her chest clenched, bile rising in her throat as fear overtook her. Had she killed you? Was she the one who had doomed you to burn like her mother before you?

Her thoughts spiraled, clawing at her like jagged glass, until Zoey’s sharp cry cut through the despair.

“You guys—!” Her voice cracked, urgent. “The light… it’s fading…”

Every head snapped upward. Faces streaked with tears, jaws slack with grief, eyes wide with a desperate, fragile hope. For a moment none of them breathed, the silence stretched taut, trembling, as the brilliance began to soften.

The dome of light shimmered, dimming slowly. In its place, a silhouette appeared, glowing, indistinct, blinding at first. The figure hovered in the haze, descending at a pace agonizingly slow.

Shock. Disbelief. Awe. It rippled across their faces in waves. Seoha’s lips parted soundlessly, his tears still streaking as his gaze locked on the descending figure. Seungho staggered to his feet, claws trembling in the air as if reaching. Haneul pressed a fist to his chest, his breath sharp and ragged. Hwimori whimpered low in his throat, eyes wide. And Jinu… Jinu fell silent, his entire body shaking, amber eyes staring like a man seeing salvation where only death had been.

As the glow ebbed, the details emerged.

Your form, bathed in white, clothes gleaming as though woven from starlight. Hair floating, haloing your face in a radiant crown. Skin smoothed like porcelain, though that wasn’t the most shocking of all. 

Across your body rippled an iridescent sheen, markings alive and shifting, etched into your skin like living sigils. They shimmered with colors beyond mortal description. Threads that moved as though breathing. They looked like the Honmoon itself, carved into you.

The power pulsed from you in waves. Ancient. Otherworldly. It hummed in the marrow of everyone present, proof that you were no longer human.

The boys’ expressions fractured, relief tangled with awe, disbelief, terror.

Haneul’s eyes brimmed as his lips shaped your name like a prayer. Seungho pressed a shaking hand against his mouth, unable to disguise the tremor in his chest. Seoha let out a soft, broken laugh, tears blurring his vision, muttering “impossible” under his breath. Hwimori whimpered, his beast’s ears flattening as tears streaked his cheeks. 

Jinu’s tears fell freely now, his hand reaching upward instinctively, as though he might catch you out of the heavens.

Huntrix stared in stunned silence. Mira’s blade dropped slightly at her side, her eyes wide with awe. Zoey pressed a hand to her lips, unable to stop the tears that welled. And Rumi… Rumi sobbed silently, gratitude and disbelief shaking her shoulders. You had survived. You had become the tether.

Your descent suddenly grew faster as the glow faded, your body beginning to fall like gravity had suddenly reclaimed you.

“No—!” Jinu bolted forward, faster than thought, leaping into the air. His arms caught you as you dropped, cradling you to his chest before you could hit the stage. He landed on his knees, pulling your body impossibly close to his own.

Your body was warm, glowing faintly, your eyes still closed. His tears spilled into your hair as he clutched you tight, voice breaking on your name.

The boys closed in on Jinu in a frantic circle, bodies hunched and trembling, their fear spilling into the air so thick it was suffocating.

“Baby…” Haneul dropped to his knees before you, his hands fisted helplessly against his sides. His chest hitched, eyes red and wet as he stared at you limp in Jinu’s arms.

Seungho pressed close at your side, his face contorted, eyes hollow. He reached for your hand with shaking claws, curling your limp fingers into his palm. “Is she breathing—?” His voice cracked into a whisper, broken by the weight of terror. “Oh, gods, please…”

Hwimori had shifted back into his human form and crouched low, chest rumbling with a trembling whine. His hands felt along your wrist, heart thudding as he felt your beating pulse.

Then, softer than anyone expected, his voice rasped through clenched teeth. “She’s alive.”

Jinu choked on a sob, crushing you to his chest, rocking you back and forth like a mother would a child, as though holding you tighter might force life back into your body. Tears fell freely down his face, dampening your hair. 

“My girl,” he whispered, voice shaking with a rawness none of them had ever heard. He pressed his lips to your forehead, his whole body trembling. “My baby… my everything. Mine.”

“Thank god,” Seoha muttered, his composure shattered. His hands dragged through his damp hair as he crouched closer, blinking tears. “Don’t you do that to me again. I can’t—” His words cut off as his throat closed, and he pressed his forehead to your temple, whispering against your skin, “I can’t lose you. Not after everything. Not now.”

Seungho’s hand tightened around yours. He lifted it slowly, pressing your limp palm to his cheek as tears streamed down his face unchecked. His voice was hoarse, trembling. “You scared the shit out of me… I thought—I thought you’d left us. Don’t you dare do that again.” His cheek pressed harder into your palm, eyes squeezed shut. “I love you too much for this.”

Hwimori was silent, palms clutched tight as he stared at you. Alive. Breathing. Here. He let out a desperate whine as tears flowed freely down his face. 

Mira, Zoey, and Rumi had run closer, their weapons now gone, but they couldn’t keep from stopping at the sight. The girls huddled together, arms around each other, sobbing quietly as they watched the boys weep over you. 

They had never seen them like this… utterly undone. Tender. Vulnerable. Human. A wave of awe, sympathy, and something softer swept through them, as they looked at you with newfound care.

Mira sucked in a breath and looked around, “We can’t stay here.” she muttered, glancing at the crowd, still believing this was performance. “Too many eyes.”

“Let’s get her backstage” Rumi stated. She ran towards Jinu who was clutching you to his chest. 

“Jinu!” 

But the demon didn’t look, he was too focused on you, your warmth, in his arms. 

“Jinu- we have to move her.” She muttered nervously. It was like he wasn’t hearing a word she said. She glanced to the nearest boy to her– Seoha. 

“Romance, please,” She pleaded. He blinked, tears still staining his cheeks and disbelief still on his face. As if waking up from a trance, he looked at Rumi. 

“There are too many eyes here. Let’s move this backstage.”

As if waking from a dream, Seoha glanced around at the crowd still cheering. Some of them happy, most confused. He clenched his jaw and nodded to her. 

In a swift motion, he was able to gather Jinu and the others to move you out of sight. Jinu didn’t have it in him to stand, so the boys all apparated him and you elsewhere, out of prying eyes.

Once out of sight somewhere in the stadium, the boys had huddled around you once again with Huntrix standing over them. You were still unconscious in Jinu’s arms, and they were getting desperate to have you wake.

“Baby? Open your eyes, please…” Seoha coaxed, brushing his thumb gently across your cheek. His tears spilled freely, falling onto your skin, sliding down the curve of your face. He pressed his forehead against your own, voice breaking, begging: “Please… come back to us.”

You felt it before you saw anything.

Warmth. The press of strong arms around you. Salt in the air, tears dripping onto your skin. Sobs. Sniffles. Pleas. It was dark, but they were there… you could feel them. Their warmth, their scent, the sharp spice of Seungho’s sweat, the faint incense of Seoha’s cologne, the earth-and-fire musk of Haneul, the feral tang of Hwimori, the bittersweet smoke of Jinu. They were wrapped around you, shielding you, holding you.

The pain was gone. Where had it gone? Was it over? Or… had you died?

Peace washed over you like a tide, light and endless, a coil of magic humming through every vein. Your body felt lighter, charged, threaded with power you didn’t understand. Iridescent streams wound around your soul, soft but potent. It didn’t feel human anymore. 

Maybe this was what death felt like… empty, quiet, at peace.

And then, faintly, you heard them.

“…please…” “…stay…” “…don’t leave us again…”

Your breath hitched. Your chest rose. The world came rushing back as your eyes fluttered open.

Jinu was the first thing you saw.

He looked down at you with an expression so raw it seared your heart, a mixture of disbelief and uncontained relief, tears still spilling, his lips parted like he couldn’t believe you were really there. His hand trembled against your cheek.

Beside him, the others leaned in, every one of them tear-streaked, red-eyed, broken open by fear and awe. Their gazes locked on you, drinking in the sight of your open eyes, proof that you were alive.

But your eyes weren’t the same. They glowed crimson, deep and unyielding, no longer flickering but… permanent.

Your hand lifted weakly, cupping Jinu’s tear-wet face. He broke into another sob at your touch, closing his eyes as if savoring the feel of your skin.

You smiled faintly, whispering, voice raspy but tender. “I didn’t think I could take you with me to heaven…”

Jinu’s chest shuddered as he cupped your hand with his, pressing into it like a man dying of thirst. “As if anyone could separate me from you, baby. I would never allow it…” His voice broke on the vow.

Tears welled in your eyes as you turned your gaze.

“You came back,” Haneul muttered hoarsely, his voice almost a question. His eyes brimmed, his body bent low before you.

Your gaze swept across them, confusion mixing with wonder. Tear-streaked faces, raw eyes, trembling lips. They looked devastated… like men who had shattered and stitched themselves back together in the space of a breath.

“Why are you all crying?” you whispered.

Seoha let out a breathy, broken chuckle, brushing your cheek again. “We thought we lost you. And you wonder why—” His voice caught. He shook his head, forehead pressing to yours again. “Gods, you’re impossible. Even at the edge of death, you don’t know what you do to us.”

Your eyes widened, realization dawning like a flood. “Wait… I’m not dead?”

“No, sweetheart,” Haneul whispered, lifting your wrist to his lips. He kissed it tenderly, tears streaking his cheeks. “You did it.”

The words sank in slowly, disbelief breaking across you like a tide. You gasped, pushing yourself up shakily. Jinu held you close, steadying you, unwilling to let you go for even a second.

The world was still the stadium but darker, somewhere in the back perhaps? It was still filled with the stench of smoke. And yet, the boys surrounded you, each of them alive, each of them staring at you like you were a miracle. Above them, Rumi, Mira, and Zoey clung to each other, sobbing openly, their faces lit with awe and gratitude.

“I’m…” Your voice faltered as you looked down at yourself. Your clothes shimmered white, your skin etched with iridescent sigils that rippled faintly with movement, glowing softly. Your fingers trembled as you lifted them into the light. “I did it?”

“Yes.” Jinu’s smile broke through his tears, soft and disbelieving.

“Gave me the scare of my life while you were at it,” Seungho muttered, voice still raw.

A stunned laugh burst from your lips. The joy swelled suddenly in your chest, breaking through your shock. You let out a little squeal and flung yourself toward Seoha. He staggered, caught off guard, before wrapping his arms tight around you, crushing you against him. He pressed desperate kisses into your hair, muttering incoherently, “Never again, never again—”

The others couldn’t hold back.

Haneul pulled you from Seoha’s arms to clutch you against his chest, his lips pressing to your hairline, your cheek, your temple. “You terrified me…” he whispered. “How are you feeling now, baby? Anything hurt?” The tremble in his voice made your eyes well with tears.

“I’m fine, Haneul.” You soothed, wiping away at his tears. “Just a little tired…”

He released a breath of relief, almost a sigh, before he proceeded to kiss your lips over and over again in short, loving pecks, “My love. My baby… You’re here. You’re here…”

Seungho tugged you next, his lips trembling as he kissed your knuckles, then your lips, then buried his face in your neck with a groan. “You broke me and saved me in the same breath. I can’t breathe without you.”

Hwimori nudged his head against you, whining softly before seizing your face in both hands and kissing your tears away. “I thought I’d lost you again.” he mumbled, and the ache in his voice gripped at your heart. 

“You didn’t. And you won’t. Not ever.” You soothed. 

Your soul beast closed his eyes, savoring the sound of your voice, whispering in broken repetition, “Mine. Mine. Mine.”

And Jinu… he held you last, trembling, his mouth finding yours in a kiss that was more a sob than anything else, his tears mixing with yours. His forehead pressed to yours as he whispered, “I’m sorry I ever doubted you,” his thumb went to caress your lower lip tenderly, “You’re everything. My tether. My love. My forever. My strong girl.”

Huntrix stood close by, tears spilling as they watched, arms tight around one another. 

Mira’s voice caught in her throat as she whispered, “She did it…” 

Zoey nodded into her shoulder, crying with relief, while Rumi simply stared, her face wet, her chest rising with the deepest gratitude she had ever felt.

For the first time since the nightmare began, there was peace.

After what felt like an eternity of being smothered in tears, kisses, and trembling hands, you turned, reluctantly tugging free from Jinu’s arms. He clutched you like he’d never let go, but at your soft look, he loosened his grip.

The girls stood just beyond the circle of the boys. Their arms still locked around each other, but their eyes, gods, their eyes. They looked at you as though you were something ethereal. Something not of this world. You could see it in their faces: the awe, the disbelief, the way their gazes traced the iridescent markings etched into your skin, the faint shimmer that still clung to you like light refusing to let go.

You walked toward them slowly, each step quiet against the wooden floorboards. And before you could even speak, Rumi broke.

She hurled herself forward, arms wrapping around you, sobbing into your shoulder. The force of her skin against yours made you gasp. The moment you touched, the markings on your arms rippled and shimmered, light vibrating outward in a low hum.

You both pulled back in shock, wide-eyed, clutching each other’s arms. Your eyes stared down at where her hands glowed against your skin, the sheen of your markings pulsing alive under her touch.

“Woah—” you both gasped together, eyes darting up to one another, startled, breathless.

Mira and Zoey froze mid-step, their jaws slack. The boys instantly surged forward, alarm flashing across their faces, claws twitching, but they halted when they saw you weren’t in danger.

“What was that?” you breathed, staring at your glowing arms.

“I… I have no idea…” Rumi whispered.

The two of you just stared, confusion tangled between you, until a laugh bubbled from your throat. A shocked, breathy chuckle. Rumi’s lips broke into a watery smile, and then you both laughed, disbelieving, giddy. 

She pulled you in again, holding you tighter this time. “I’m so glad you’re okay…” she whispered hoarsely. “For a moment I thought—” Her voice cracked, the words tumbling out broken. “I thought I had—that you had—”

You pulled back to see her face, tear-streaked, raw with guilt. Your heart clenched. You squeezed her arm gently, grounding her. “I’m okay…”

She sobbed, wiping her cheeks messily. “You’re kind of insane, you know that?”

You laughed, but before you could respond, Zoey threw herself at you, nearly knocking the breath out of your lungs. You hear Hwimori growl somewhere to your left. 

Again, that ripple of magic thrummed across your skin, light shimmering faintly. You gasped softly, but Zoey didn’t notice, her eyes were squeezed shut, arms banded tight around you like a vice.

“Oh my god, Y/N!” she cried, voice breaking. “I’m so glad you didn’t like… die.”

A laugh slipped from you, awkward and shaky, as you patted her back. “Thanks, Zoey…”

You looked up over her shoulder, only to find Mira watching you. Her gaze was sharp, calculating, like she was trying to piece together a puzzle. But as your eyes met, the hardness softened. She gave a faint nod, her voice low, “…same here, Y/N. I’m glad you’re okay.”

Your chest tightened. You hadn’t spent much time with Mira… she was distant, sharper than the others… but you remembered. She had been the one to save your life on the train. Beneath all that steel, there was a woman who cared fiercely for those she swore to protect. And somehow, you realized, she was including you now. You dipped your head to her, gratitude swelling.

“Okay, that’s enough,” Seungho muttered, stepping forward, his claws twitching as if ready to yank you back.

Zoey whipped her head to glare over your shoulder. She held onto you tighter, scowling. “Back off.”

Seungho bristled instantly, lips curling.

“Hmph.” Zoey huffed, stubborn, clutching you tighter. And then, without warning, you were pulled right out of her arms by Hwimori.

“Hey!” Zoey screeched.

Hwimori pressed you against his chest, baring his teeth at her in a low growl. His eyes narrowed, feral, daring her to try and take you again.

Zoey shot him a glare like he was a misbehaving dog. “Seriously?”

“Calm down, Hwi, it’s fine,” you soothed, laughter spilling despite yourself. He only whined, clutching you tighter, refusing to let you go.

The girls’ eyes softened as they watched. Something strange rose in their chests… something they couldn’t quite name. Was it relief? Gratitude? Affection? 

They had played a part in this, in you becoming what you were. The ritual had worked because of them, because of their voices, their magic intertwined with yours. And now, looking at you alive, glowing, impossibly radiant like the Honmoon had been… they couldn’t shake the sense that a piece of their power lived inside you. That they were connected to you, bonded in some new, inexplicable way.

Mira’s thoughts churned, unsettled. The way the markings on your skin had flared at Rumi’s touch… It was the same reaction the Honmoon gave when they’d activate it. Was it possible the tether was not only demon-born, but hunter-touched as well? Her mind spun, questions forming like storm clouds.

Everyone exchanged looks, the silence heavy, almost awkward.

“So…” you murmured, exhaustion thick in your voice, “what now?”

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The world felt muted when you woke up an hour ago. Soft sheets tangled around your legs, warm bodies pressed into your sides, the faint hum of magic still lingering in the air like the aftertaste of smoke and honey. 

Your body ached, heavy with exhaustion, but also lighter in a way you couldn’t name… like some invisible burden had lifted even as another, stranger weight settled in its place. You blinked up at the ceiling of your room, the dim light spilling in from the half-closed curtains painting thin lines across the walls.

They were draped around you like a living shield. Seungho sprawled half-atop you, his face buried against your stomach as if he never intended to lift it again. Seoha’s long frame curled along your other side, his arm slung protectively over your waist, fingers twitching even in rest like he couldn’t trust you to stay. Haneul was at the headboard, shoulders pressed to the wall, your hand caught firmly in his grip, knuckles white, like if he let go for even a second, you’d vanish again. Hwimori tucked himself by your legs, cheek pressed against your thigh, a quiet tremor still running through him as though the memory of last night was trapped in his body.

You had surprised them all. You’d thought they might never forgive themselves, and for a moment, when you stood against them, you’d believed you might never forgive them either. That they would go through with the massacre, bind themselves in blood, and leave you behind in every way that mattered. But then you chose otherwise. You leapt, and the world changed.

The door creaked open. Jinu entered, phone loose in his hand, expression set in that unreadable calm that always concealed something deeper. He stopped at the sight of you surrounded by them, and for a moment you caught the flicker of relief break through his mask.

“Well?” you asked.

“I sent the message,” he sighed, and with a graceless dive, he landed onto the bed, trampling over Seoha in the process.

Seoha groaned, half-heartedly shoving at him. “Do you mind?”

“They’ll meet us tonight,” Jinu finished, ignoring him, his gaze already drifting to you.

“Do they really have to?” Seungho groaned into your stomach, his voice muffled by fabric and skin. He refused to lift his head, clutching you tighter like a child refusing to let go of his blanket. “I don’t like the idea of hunters in our living space…”

“They have no reason to hunt you… not anymore,” you murmured, your hand sliding into his hair, combing through the strands as if to soothe him. “Besides… we need to figure out how this all works together.”

“What do they have to do with it…” he muttered, voice heavy with petulance and weariness.

“Their magic created the tether,” Jinu reminded softly, though his jaw tightened. “I don’t like the idea of them being here either, but we need to figure out what happens from here on out…”

You caught the weight of his eyes on you then, lingering longer than necessary. Something in his stare made you falter, as if he were memorizing a new version of you. His gaze traced over your skin, paler, as if dusted with moonlight. The faint shimmer beneath your veins where the tether pulsed, the subtle glow that rimmed your irises when the light struck them just right, no longer entirely human. 

You had changed. You had sacrificed what you were to become this.

His throat bobbed as he swallowed, his thoughts loud even in his silence, she had to change for us. She had to give up her humanity because of us.

And yet… he wanted to believe that meant forever. That this form, this bond, meant there would never again be a world where you were torn from him.

Relief warred with fear in him, and it cut you to feel it.

Your own thoughts spun wildly, your chest heavy with all the questions you hadn’t had the strength to face. What did it mean to be a tether? Why had you survived, when by all accounts you should not have? Why hadn’t the boys disappeared along with the fractured Honmoon and all the other demons? What would Huntrix do now, without their barrier?

“We need to discuss this,” you said softly, your voice trembling. “I—I don’t know a single thing about what it means to be the tether—”

“Us either,” Seoha interjected with a humorless chuckle, brushing his thumb absently over your waist. “You’re the first one in the history of forever to become one…” His lips tilted into a half-smile, though his eyes betrayed him. “Although, I’m not complaining… just look at you.”

He lifted your hand and pressed soft kisses up your arm, his mouth warm and gentle. His lips trailed to your collarbone before he paused, and when your eyes met his, your heart nearly broke. His gaze held a love so fierce it hurt, tempered by a fear that twisted deep. He cupped your cheek, thumb trembling against your skin.

“Please,” he whispered, voice raw. “Don’t ever do anything like that again…”

And then it hit you. Harder than ever before. Their presence wasn’t just around you anymore, it was in you. The bond had deepened into something unbearable in its clarity. Their emotions pressed into you like tidal waves. 

Fear, grief, love so sharp it cut. You felt their memories, fragments of last night flashing in your mind as if you had lived them yourself. Seungho’s silent scream when your body fell limp, Seoha’s desperate prayers muttered through blood, Haneul breaking against the chains to reach you, Hwimori clawing at the ground, Jinu’s hollow eyes watching you crumble.

It was stronger than ever before. No longer a tether of threads woven between you, but something deeper, more permanent. You weren’t just bound to them. You were them, and they were you. Anchors. Mirrors. Reflections of the same existence.

You looked at their faces, creased with anguish, softened by awe… and knew, yes, you were the tether now, but more than that, you were tethered to them most of all.

The silence shattered with a voice choked on tears.

“Forgive me.”

Your head turned. Jinu had sunk to his knees by the bed, his hand clutching the sheets like they were the only thing holding him to reality. His eyes shimmered with unshed tears, uncharacteristically bare.

“Forgive me, baby,” his voice cracked, softer than you had ever heard it. “I… did so many things you didn’t deserve.”

Your chest seized. He bowed his head, shaking. “I locked you in. I lied to you. I let you think you were free when I was weaving chains around you. I convinced myself it was love, that it was fate, when it was selfishness. And then—then I was ready to damn the world just to keep you. I almost—” His voice broke, and a tear slid down his cheek. “I almost made you hate me forever.”

“Jinu…”

“No.” His eyes snapped up, red-rimmed, desperate. “Don’t tell me I did what I had to. Don’t tell me you understand. I don’t deserve that. I should have respected you. I should have listened instead of trying to control you. But I couldn’t. I can’t…” He choked.

“...Not after hundreds of years mourning you. Not after lifetimes of losing you. I couldn’t let you go again. I thought—I thought if I had to burn the whole world, at least you’d still be mine.” His hands shook as he reached for you, hesitated, then finally pressed into your shoulder, clutching you. “And when you fell, when I thought you were gone again—I swear, I wanted to tear myself apart.”

You silenced him with your arms, dragging him into your embrace. His sobs broke against your shoulder, muffled by your hair. His fingers dug into your back as though you might dissolve if he didn’t hold you hard enough. “I’m sorry,” he kept muttering against your skin, voice fractured, “I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry…”

Seoha was the first to move. His body shifted against yours, head bent low, and for this moment, the playful gleam in his eyes was gone. His lashes trembled as though he was ashamed to even look at you. His voice, usually silken and coaxing, barely broke above a whisper.

“I tried to make you live in a dream,” he confessed, each word halting as though it burned his tongue. “Because I was terrified reality would take you from me. If I could make you believe in my fantasy, I thought you’d never leave… but it was cruel, wasn’t it?” His hand ghosted over your wrist, the lightest brush, as if he feared you might recoil. 

When you didn’t, his fingers clutched desperately, knuckles paling. “I wanted you to think you were free, when all I did was bind you tighter. I’m sorry,” his voice cracked, and the weight of his fear spilled raw in his amber eyes, shimmering wet. “I can’t forgive myself for what I did to you.”

Before you could speak, another voice broke in. Strained and trembling. Seungho bent to wrap his arms around you. He had buried his face in your stomach, and his hair tickled your skin as he refused to look up. When he finally did, his lips were parted in a shuddering breath, eyes dark with unshed tears. 

“I wanted to cage you,” he said hoarsely, words guttural with shame. His broad hand slid down your side, clutching too tightly, then loosening when he realized his grip shook. “To lock you somewhere the world couldn’t hurt you. To keep you so safe you’d never see the sun again.” 

His throat worked, and he laughed bitterly, brokenly. “That isn’t love. That’s… smothering. And still, I did it. I nearly broke you under the weight of my obsession.” His eyes met yours at last, brimming with regret. “I don’t know if I can ever forgive myself, but… I need you to know that every cruel thing I did was born from the terror of losing you.”

The bed shifted again as Haneul moved closer. He hadn’t spoken until now. His silence had been heavy, suffocating. But when he finally lifted his face, you flinched at the rawness etched there. His usual cocky half-smile was gone, his lips trembling instead. He gripped your hand, pressing it to his chest like it was the only thing keeping him breathing. 

“I hated myself,” he choked, his deep voice breaking in ways you’d never heard. “For every second I wasn’t your shield. For letting you fight alone. For every scar you took because I wasn’t fast enough, strong enough.” His thumb rubbed circles over the back of your hand, but his eyes were wide and unblinking, like he was begging you to carve the truth into him. 

“You almost died, and it was my fault. I swore I’d protect you, but I failed. And if I lose you again, I… I don’t think I’d survive it.” His chest shuddered under your palm, tears slipping past his lashes.

Then came Hwimori. He was already curled against your leg, trembling, and when the words burst out of him they weren’t elegant confessions. They were sobs. His voice cracked like glass, raw with desperation. 

“All I thought about was owning you,” he cried, clinging to you so tightly your leg ached. His nails bit into your skin through the sheets as his tears dampened the fabric. “Clinging to you, holding you, because I was so afraid you’d slip away. I didn’t know how to love without consuming you.” 

His head shook violently against your thigh, as if shaking himself apart. “I was selfish, I know. I know. But the thought of being left behind again—” His words strangled into a sob, muffled against you. “I couldn’t take it. I still can’t.”

One by one, their apologies carved deeper into you. Seoha’s whisper trembling with regret. Seungho’s guttural confession cracking his pride. Haneul’s voice breaking under the weight of his vow. Hwimori sobbing like a puppy clinging to its owner. Each word tore at your heart, unraveling pain you thought you had buried, but at the same time… every word bound you tighter to them, stitched you together in threads of agony and devotion.

Your thoughts spiraled. You remembered every lock, every manipulation, every lie, every choice stolen from you in the name of devotion. You remembered nights staring at walls you couldn’t escape, the confusion of being loved so intensely it burned, the ache of feeling trapped in affection that suffocated even as it warmed you.

And yet, you looked at them now, wrecked, ruined, begging for forgiveness with their whole souls… and you understood. You understood that their love was not cruelty, not really... It was brokenness. It was the sharp, jagged edges of centuries of grief. They had suffered for you, bled for you, waited for you across lifetimes, and in the end, they only knew how to cling too hard.

Your tears spilled hot and silent as the realization cut you open.

“I hated it sometimes,” you whispered, and all of them froze. You lifted your gaze, wet eyes shining. “The way you trapped me. The lies, the half-truths, the way you made me feel powerless. I hated how much it hurt, how much it confused me. How much it made me doubt whether love could be something good.”

Their faces shattered with guilt.

“But…” your voice shook, but you pressed on. “But I understand you. I see you… all of you. How could I not, when I’ve lived it with you now? You’re broken. You’ve always been broken. And all you’ve ever tried to do is love me, protect me, keep me safe, even when you didn’t know how. How could I blame you for wanting to hold on? For being terrified of losing me again? How could I ever hate you for loving me too much?”

Their breaths caught, hope warring with disbelief.

“This is my choice,” you said firmly, tears slipping down your cheeks. “I chose to become this. To be your tether. To be with you, no matter what it means. And whatever happens next—we’ll face it together.”

Your voice softened to a whisper, fragile as glass. “I thought I’d died… but when I woke, all I felt was you. And I couldn’t have asked for more.” You sobbed softly with a smile. 

“I love you,” you said at last, the words tumbling out in a voice cracked but unwavering. You looked at each of them, your gaze trembling between their tear-streaked faces, your heart so heavy and so full it threatened to split in two. “I love you all so much… so I forgive you.”

For a heartbeat, the room froze. A sharp silence fell, thick enough to suffocate, and then… the bond thrummed like a living thing. It surged through your chest so powerfully it made you gasp, like your ribs might break beneath the weight of it. Their eyes widened all at once, disbelieving, as if they had never dared to hope you might speak those words to them again.

“You’re more than ours now,” Seoha whispered, his voice hoarse, breaking on the edges. He leaned forward as though pulled by gravity, brushing his lips against your temple. The kiss lingered, trembling, like a prayer he was afraid to finish. His fingers slid into your hair, clutching the back of your head as though he could anchor himself there. When he pulled back, his lips were wet with his own tears.

“You’re our anchor,” Seungho murmured, his voice low, almost guttural. He pressed himself into your side, his arm banding tightly around your waist. His mouth found yours with desperation, hot, trembling, a kiss that bruised and begged in the same breath. His tears smeared against your cheek, and when he broke away it was only to press his lips again to your jaw, your neck, frantic as though he couldn’t kiss you enough.

“Our tether,” Haneul added, his deep voice breaking into something almost boyish with the weight of his grief. His rough hand clutched yours so hard it hurt, his thumb dragging across your knuckles like he was memorizing every ridge. He leaned in and captured your lips in a kiss so tender it made your breath hitch… slow and lingering. His forehead pressed to yours when he pulled away, his breath shuddering out as though you had just pulled him back from the edge of drowning.

Hwimori pressed his face into your thigh, his tears soaking through the fabric, his voice shaking with devotion and fear. “We can’t imagine a world without you,” he whispered, broken, his lips brushing your skin with every word. “Not anymore. Not ever.” 

Then, with a sudden desperate movement, he tilted his tear-streaked face up and kissed your mouth. It was messy, wet with tears, but so full of aching need you thought you might shatter under it. He sobbed against your lips, his hands clutching your waist like he was terrified you’d disappear.

Jinu hadn’t spoken yet. His amber eyes, usually so steady, were glistening with something raw and unguarded. When he finally moved, it was slow, as though approaching something sacred.

His hand cupped your cheek with trembling care, his thumb brushing away a tear you hadn’t realized had fallen. “My fate has always been you,” he whispered, voice low and steady but breaking at the end. Then he bent, pressing his lips to yours in a kiss that was devastating in its gentleness. He kissed you like a vow, like a man who had waited lifetimes to taste forgiveness, his breath mingling with yours in aching silence. 

When he pulled back, his forehead rested against yours, and his whisper trembled into the bond, “Always you. Only you.”

And one by one, they kissed you again, like broken men, like drowning souls finding air, like sinners kissing the altar of their only salvation. Seoha’s mouth soft and pleading. Seungho’s hungry, unrestrained. Haneul’s steady, shaking. Hwimori’s raw, desperate, unfiltered. And Jinu’s achingly tender, worshipping, as though every brush of his lips was a vow carved into eternity.

Each kiss bled into the next until you were surrounded, consumed, smothered in love so fierce and twisted it was holy. And as their words sank into you, heavy and sacred, you knew with terrifying certainty that they were right. You weren’t just theirs anymore. You were the thread binding them to existence itself… their tether, their anchor, their salvation.

You stayed tangled with them on the bed for what felt like both an instant and an eternity. The hours bled into whispers, every breath heavy with devotion. 

They murmured promises into your skin, worship into your bones. The room was hushed save for the soft sounds of affection, foreheads pressed together, lips brushing, hands unwilling to let go. The bond pulsed gently, soothing but alive, weaving you closer with every thrum.

Eventually, Haneul was the first to pull away, though not without a lingering kiss to your hair. “I’ll make breakfast,” he whispered, sliding off the bed with reluctant grace. His absence left a void against your side. 

Jinu and Seoha followed, muttering something about work. “Damage control,” Jinu had called it with that sharp sigh of his, though the way his hand hesitated at the door betrayed his reluctance to leave you. Hwimori, eyes still puffy from earlier, slipped out to make your favorite morning tea. 

Which left you with Seungho. He didn’t waste a second, catching your wrist and tugging you upright with effortless strength. 

“We need to get some food in you, princess,” he muttered against your shoulder, his lips brushing over the bare skin in a kiss that made your knees buckle. You laughed softly, swatting his chest before moving toward your dresser to grab a hair tie. But the mirror stopped you cold.

You froze, staring at your reflection as though seeing a stranger. Your breath hitched, hand trembling in the air mid-motion. 

“Oh…” The sound slipped from you in a gasp, your voice trembling. Your skin glowed faintly, almost iridescent, as though light was trapped beneath it. Not just healthy… but unnatural, divine. And your eyes… were now a deep crimson, rich as spilt wine, burning like molten rubies. They seemed alive, threaded with an unearthly power that pulsed in rhythm with your heartbeat.

“Is that… really me?” you whispered, chest tight with a mix of wonder and fear.

Seungho’s presence was a shadow and a warmth, his tall frame moving behind you before you even heard him. His hands, broad and steady, slipped around your waist, grounding you. His gaze locked onto yours in the mirror. Not your skin, not your form, but your eyes. 

He kissed your shoulder softly, his lips lingering like a vow against your skin. “That’s you,” he murmured low and tender. “More than you’ve ever been. But nevertheless… still you. Still the you I’m in love with. Still the you we’ve all been waiting centuries to find.”

You swallowed hard, heart stuttering, unable to look away from your reflection or from him behind you. When he turned you gently to face him, his hands cupped your cheeks like you were fragile, breakable glass. His eyes, usually sharp and cold, softened into something that made your throat ache.

“You’re beautiful,” he said simply, but it wasn’t simple at all. His voice cracked with sincerity, his thumbs brushing your cheeks as if to memorize the new you. “Not because of this,” he tilted his head toward your glowing skin, your crimson eyes. “Because you’re you. And now the world finally sees it the way we do.”

He kissed your forehead, tender and grounding, before twining his fingers with yours. Still dazed, you let him lead you from the room, your palm burning with his warmth.

The kitchen was filled with the sizzle of a pan and the scent of garlic and eggs. Haneul stood at the stove, sleeves rolled to his elbows, humming under his breath while flipping something that smelled heavenly.

Hwimori spotted you first. He hurried over, setting your tea on the table with a grin that reached his still-amber eyes. He bent down and kissed your head firmly. “Here, for you,” 

The warmth of the mug seeped into your palms as you smiled, pressing a kiss to his cheek in thanks.

Seoha pulled you toward him almost immediately, settling you onto his lap with a possessive ease. His lips brushed your shoulder, sending heat crawling over your skin. “Sit. Rest. You’ve done enough.”

Your gaze drifted to the counter, where unfinished trays of sweets sat untouched. The sight made your stomach twist. You groaned, covering your face with your hands. “Oh my god, I completely forgot I had just left them there.”

Seoha’s mouth moved against your shoulder again, softer this time, his tone coaxing. “Don’t worry about it, angel.”

“But… we have to celebrate Hwi’s birthday,” you mumbled, the words heavy with guilt.

Hwimori looked up from pulling out a chair, his lips quirking into a sheepish smile. “You don’t have to, my love.”

“Yes, I do! I promised. And you need a birthday celebration.”

“I mean…” He sat down, shrugging, “I don’t neeeed it.”

You narrowed your eyes at him. “Yes, you DO.”

His smile widened, soft and touched, his gaze shimmering with warmth at your insistence.

“We’ll shop for more ingredients tomorrow,” Haneul chimed in sweetly, glancing over his shoulder at you from the stove.

Your eyes lit up. “Really?”

“Of course, baby.”

“Yay!” You bounced happily in Seoha’s lap, earning a strangled groan. His hand clamped on your thigh.

“Angel, don’t do that unless you want me to forget there’s food on the table,” he growled into your ear, voice dripping with suggestion.

Your face went scarlet. “Oh my god, you’re insufferable,” you grumbled, smacking his arm.

He pinched your thigh teasingly, and you squeaked in protest. Your exasperated glare only made the others laugh, the sound filling the kitchen with a lightness that soothed your chest.

Haneul set plates down just as Jinu walked in, his hair slightly tousled, a crease between his brows. He leaned over and kissed the crown of your head before sinking into a chair with a sigh, grabbing his coffee.

“How’d the damage control go?” you asked, tentative.

He shook his head, taking a sip of the lukewarm drink. “Tried to convince venue and management it was part of a performance. They weren’t happy, but for now they’re asking when we’ll come in to start planning the next steps. New EP. Promotion. All of that.”

Your brows knitted. “Are you guys going to continue being idols? Even if you don’t have to work for Gwi Ma anymore?”

“Fuck no,” Seungho grumbled around a mouthful of food. “I don’t like being away from you longer than I have to. And the job comes with a busy schedule…”

“You guys don’t like it?” you asked, curiosity stirring.

Hwimori perked up faintly. “I like the music part. Maybe I’ll produce or compose. Something where I don’t have to leave you.”

Seoha smirked, hand tightening at your waist. “I don’t really like the idea of marketing myself to other women. Besides…” he tilted his head, lips brushing your ear, “won’t you get jealous?”

You scoffed, crossing your arms. “Me? Jealous? I’m literally tethered to you.”

He grinned, voice low and taunting. “Mm, sure. Tell that to the thousands of girls who scream my name every night… Half of them probably write smutty fanfics about me already… or when I make eye contact with a girl in the front row and she swears I sang just for her… you gonna share me with them, angel?”

Your cheeks heated instantly. “Okay, I change my mind. It’s time for a job change.”

The boys roared with laughter, the sound vibrating through the bond, light and contagious.

Breakfast continued in a haze of food, chatter, and warmth. You found yourself smiling between bites, glancing from one boy to the other, the glow of the bond alive in every shared look. 

But even amid laughter, little sparks betrayed something new. The way your fingertips brushed the table and the cutlery rattled faintly, how the steam from your tea lingered longer than it should, curling as though drawn to you.

You tried to ignore it. Tried to pretend you didn’t notice. But the others did. You felt it in the way their gazes lingered on you, puzzled, almost afraid.

You set your fork down and turned to Jinu. “What did Rumi say earlier? When they agreed to come?”

Jinu exhaled slowly, swirling water in his glass before drinking. “I asked if she knew anything else about what happens after the Ritual. Her father had some text we didn’t transcribe in the journal… maybe it holds the answers. But then she said something strange.” His brows drew together. “She said she knew someone who could probably give us what we need.”

“Oh?” You tilted your head. “Maybe another hunter?”

He shrugged, clearly uncertain.

A thought sparked, and you set your fork down. Narrowing your eyes, you asked, “So… when exactly were you having secret meetings with Rumi?”

Jinu stilled. Every pair of eyes at the table turned toward him with cheeky curiosity.

“Well…” he started, clearing his throat.

“Well…?” you pressed, crossing your arms, enjoying the way he shifted uneasily in his seat. You knew it wasn’t romantic, never for Jinu. The man was literally obsessed with you. But making him nervous and seeing him squirming was always fun.

“I was trying to get answers out of her. To exploit Huntrix’s weakness,” he admitted slowly. “I found out she was part demon months ago, and I needed to know what that meant.”

“Uh huh,” you said skeptically, arching a brow.

Beads of sweat seemed to form on his temple as he hurried on. The boys struggled to hold their snickers. “She had her father’s journal. I was helping her translate. That’s all. Nothing more.”

You leaned closer, lips quirking. “Mmhm. You’re awfully nervous for someone who claims he has nothing to hide.”

“I don’t! I swear!”

Seoha’s shoulders shook with muffled laughter against your back, his hand tightening on your waist.

And as Jinu scrambled for words, the room filled with the sound of the others’ amusement, your laughter blending with theirs until it felt like, for the first time in forever, you were exactly where you were supposed to be.

────────── ⚘ ──────────

The living room was thick with silence, the kind that hummed like static in the air, like a storm crouching just beyond the walls. The couch and chairs had never felt so small, cramming everyone into a space that seemed too fragile to contain the storm of tension inside it. Even the air felt brittle, like a wrong word might shatter it.

You tried to soften the edges with a smile, your voice light, but no amount of warmth could fully cut through the jagged stares being exchanged across the room.

Huntrix sat together in a neat line on the opposite couch, unified in posture. Mira sat stiff with her arms crossed and chin tilted high, her glare locked on Seungho, who returned it with equal fire, jaw twitching like he was daring her to blink first. 

Zoey shifted between them, her bright, awkward smile hanging in the air like she was trying to plaster sunshine over a battlefield. Rumi perched on the edge, shoulders tight, her discomfort written in every line of her body, though her eyes never stopped flicking to you, concern softening her usually sharp gaze.

The boys, in contrast, were a wall around you. Jinu and Hwimori flanked you on the couch, their bodies taut as coiled springs, posture screaming shield.

Haneul stood behind you, arms folded, jaw locked so tight you thought his teeth might crack. Seoha leaned against the far wall, arms crossed, dark eyes never leaving the girls, suspicion etched deep into every line of his face. Seungho had stationed himself by the window like a guard on watch, body angled toward the exit but his gaze snapping like a dagger toward Mira every time she so much as breathed.

The silence stretched, unbearable. Even the clock on the wall seemed to tick louder than it should have.

Zoey broke first, her voice pitched too brightly, too forced. “Nice place you got here…” Her eyes swept the apartment, lingering on the shelves lined with books, the faint smell of coffee, the framed photo on the table. “You guys rent this place, or—?”

“Bought it,” Seoha muttered without sparing her a glance, his shoulders rigid.

The silence that followed was so loud you wanted to sink into the floor. Even Seungho, who had been groaning all afternoon about the audacity of inviting hunters into their home, seemed satisfied that the awkwardness was proving his point.

You cleared your throat, smoothing your palms over your thighs as if you could rub the tension out of the air. “I’m glad you guys were able to find it,” you said gently, glancing at Jinu. His expression was carved in stone.

“Well, after someone managed to break through my wards,” Jinu’s voice cut sharp, his amber eyes spearing into Rumi, “I needed to strengthen the security on this place.”

“Doesn’t help when we know your address now,” Mira shot back smoothly, her smirk all venom. “Or, you know, can just walk through the front door.”

Jinu’s jaw flexed, and you leaned forward quickly, your tone lighter. “Well, I want you guys to feel welcome here… so I had him key you into the new wards.”

Seungho scoffed. You snapped him a look sharp enough to cut glass.

Mira’s smirk only widened, slow and deliberate. “Yeah… soooo welcome.”

The tension vibrated like a plucked string until Rumi finally cleared her throat, turning her eyes on you. “So… how are you feeling?”

The question yanked every gaze to you at once. You felt the weight of it, heat prickling over your skin. You smiled softly. “I feel fine. Great, even. Lighter.” A furrow creased your brow. “But… I did notice a few strange things. I’m still getting used to what it means to be a tether. To have this… magic inside me.”

Rumi’s eyes softened. “I understand. We’ll figure this out together.”

“Do you mind telling us exactly how you feel different?” Zoey continued.

You hesitated, chewing your lip as you searched for words. “It’s… like a charged energy. Like static, always buzzing. And I think it affects things near me.” Your eyes drifted toward the boys. “I can also… sense everyone. It’s strange.”

Zoey tilted her head, curious. “What do you mean?”

“It’s like I can sense what kind of magic people carry,” you explained carefully. “Hwi feels different than Jinu. Jinu and the others feel… similar, but not the same. I think it’s because Hwi’s a soul beast.”

“Hwi?” Mira raised a brow. 

Your eyes widen, “Oh- sorry, I mean, Mystery.” You pat his lap, causing him to purr at your touch.

“Ah…” Zoey let out. The girls’ eyes widened. They’d seen Hwi’s transformation last night, yes, but hearing it named hit differently. This was the first they’ve heard of a demon soul-beast.

“And yours…” your gaze shifted to them, a hand rising to rub your temple. “Yours feels ancient. Familiar, but not in the way the bond with the boys feel. Earlier, when I greeted you—it was like something inside me recognized your magic. Like it recharged me somehow.”

Zoey sat up straighter. “I felt that too. When I hugged you, it was… weird. But good weird.”

“Let’s test it,” Mira said immediately, raising a hand.

Jinu’s grip on your waist tightened, reluctant, but after a long moment he let go. You leaned forward, extending your hand. The moment your finger brushed Mira’s, a ripple shimmered over your iridescent markings, flowing outward like ripples on a pond.

Everyone sucked in a breath. Mira’s eyes glittered, fascinated. “Huh.”

Seoha’s teeth ground audibly. “What does that even mean?”

“It means she’s connected to them,” Jinu muttered, his mind already racing. “Given it was their power that had induced the transformation… it's not impossile to assume it would react to contact once they activated it.”

“I was thinking the same,” Rumi added, voice thoughtful, her chin propped in her hand. “It reacts pretty similarly to the Honmoon.”

Zoey frowned. “So… Y/N is basically the Honmoon now?” she tilts her head to the side, “What does that mean for us then? I mean— as hunters, our job was to strengthen and maintain the Honmoon... does that mean Y/N would need something from us?”

“She doesn’t need anything from you,” Seungho snapped instantly.

“Seungho,” you scolded, sharp.

Rumi’s voice stayed calm. “If the tether needs maintenance like the Honmoon did, then—”

“We’ll handle it,” Seungho growled.

Jinu pinched the bridge of his nose, exhaling through his teeth. “It’s not that simple. We don’t know what she’ll need long-term. And it was their magic that enabled this. We’d be fools to ignore that.”

Seungho muttered under his breath but fell back, leaning against the wall with a scowl. Mira smirked.

“Does this mean you’re immortal?” Hwimori asked suddenly, tilting his head like a curious puppy. "Or will the tether have to be made again if she isn't?"

The question silenced the room. You bit your lip, hands curling in your lap. “…I don’t know.”

That answer sat like a stone in everyone’s stomach.

Finally, Rumi reached into her bag and slid her father’s leatherbound journal across the table to Jinu. “There are only three pages left we never transcribed. Maybe the answers are there.”

Jinu took it, flipping through, eyes narrowing as he skimmed the demon script.

The silence stretched again. And then—

“So…” Zoey leaned forward, smirk tugging at her lips. “Seungho is it?” 

Seungho’s glare could have frozen hell over. His jaw locked, eyes sharp enough to cut glass. Zoey tilted her head innocently. “Do you always look constipated, or is that face just for us?”

His nostrils flared. “You’re still alive only because she told me not to snap your neck.”

Zoey gasped, clutching her chest. “Oh my god! Did you hear that, Y/N? He threatened me, again!”

You sigh, pinching the bridge of your nose, “Seungho…”

“Cry harder,” Seungho muttered, still glaring daggers at Zoey.

Seoha clicked his tongue, surveying the three girls like they were an inconvenience on his shoe. “Do you hunters rehearse being this self-righteous, or does it just come naturally?”

Mira’s eyes narrowed. “Funny coming from someone who spends his life lip-syncing for screaming teenagers.”

Zoey burst out laughing. “Oh my god, she’s right! Do you pout in the mirror before concerts too?”

Seoha smirked lazily. “Better than punching a bag with abs taped on it.”

Mira froze, jaw dropping. “You saw that?!”

“You should really start closing your dressing room doors, you know. Other performers walk the hallways too.” Seoha teased. 

Mira growled audibly, fists clenched on her lap like she wanted to kill him right then and there.

Rumi cut in smoothly before she combusted. “Honestly, you four act like children. No wonder you need her to hold your leashes.”

Haneul’s jaw twitched. “The fuck did you just say?” he growled, “Maybe if you three weren’t so loud—”

“Loud?” Mira cut in with a grin sharp as her blade. “Sorry, grandpa, should we whisper so you can nap?”

“I can always put you to sleep, right now.” Haneul threatened.

“I’d like to see you try,” Mira spat.

That broke Hwimori’s patience. He growled from next to you, voice cracking raw. “Do you people ever stop talking?”

“Gods,” you muttered, rubbing your temples. “It’s like babysitting a pack of rabid wolves and feral cats.”

At last, Jinu sighed heavily, snapping the book shut. “Nothing. Daehyun never thought this far… or maybe he didn’t need to.” His eyes slid to Rumi. “You said you knew someone who could help.”

Rumi hesitated, throat bobbing. “He… was a friend of my father’s.”

“A demon?” Haneul asked sharply.

She nodded. The boys groaned in unison.

“And how are we supposed to contact him now?” Seoha demanded, eyes darting toward you. “Through her?”

“Me?” you echoed, incredulous. “How am I supposed to get him from there?”

“Well, you are the tether…” Haneul responds.

"I've only just found out what a tether was last night," you groan, "I don't know how this shit works–"

“You don’t have to,” Rumi cut in quickly. “I already spoke with him this afternoon.” Mira and Zoey stayed silent. "He'll be able to talk to us."

The room snapped. Every head whipped toward her. “You what?” Jinu’s voice was lethal.

"How? Don't tell me–” Seoha groaned.

“I… invited him over,” Rumi said sheepishly.

Jinu looked at her, confused, "Did you not hear what I said on the phone? I said this place was warded to keep demons and anyone with magic out." 

She shrugged, "He said it wouldn't be a problem–"

Before Jinu could explode, the air cracked like thunder.

You gasped as it hit you, a surge of ancient demonic energy, heavy and suffocating, pressing into your lungs like lead. The bond screamed, and the boys reacted instantly, bristling, claws and fangs flashing, every one of them snapping into defensive positions around you.

“Rumi, what the hell have you—!” Haneul barked, shoving himself in front of you, his claws lengthening.

The air split open. A fissure of darkness tore through the center of the living room, splitting reality itself. Shadows spilled like liquid, the lights flickered violently, and the scent of burning sulfur filled the air.

The energy was old. Older than Gwi Ma. It throbbed in your bones, a drumbeat that rattled your teeth and made your skin crawl.

The boys moved tighter around you, growls rumbling in their throats. Huntrix, for all their bravado, looked rattled, wide-eyed at the sudden shift.

And then he stepped through.

The Old One didn’t so much arrive as he was suddenly there. The rift peeled open, and from it stepped a man. Tall, slender, clothed in garments that shimmered faintly like silk dipped in shadow. His hair was silver-white, combed back with unnatural precision, his face clean and ageless, yet lined in just the right places to suggest wisdom rather than frailty. He looked almost regal, like an old king or a grandfatherly figure carved out of marble, his refinement so sharp it was unsettling.

But his eyes betrayed him. They were not mortal eyes. Gold threaded with black, depthless, too steady, too knowing… as if when he looked at you, he was not looking at your skin, but at every lifetime you had ever lived.

The room warped around him, reality bending politely out of his way. The light seemed to dim in deference, shadows stretching unnaturally toward his polished shoes. Even the air grew tight in your chest, each breath harder than the last, as though your lungs were no longer your own.

The bond screamed, threads thrumming with panic, the boys’ bodies trembling with the instinct to shield you. But even they knew, even as they stood in front of you, this was not something you fought. This was not just a demon. Not just a god.

It was the thing that powerd over gods, over even the demon king himself.

Slight fear gripped you as you gazed at his familiar face. You’d seen him before. Weeks ago, in that mall. His words then had clung like thorns in your mind, vague and terrifying, and now seeing him again sent your pulse racing.

At the flicker of your fear, Hwimori snarled low in his throat, the sound raw and animal. He positioned himself in front of you, shoulders squared, teeth bared, glaring daggers at the old, powerful demon as if his very hatred could tear him apart.

But to your surprise, it wasn’t just the boys bristling. Zoey and Mira stepped forward as well, weapons already alive in their hands. Zoey’s blades shimmering with a dangerous pulse, Mira’s Moon Blade glowing faint under the dim light. Both stood slightly in front of you, angled protectively, their eyes locked on the stranger.

The Old One’s eyes sparkled, amusement and intrigue twined in their golden depths as he leisurely glanced around the room.

Jinu stood frozen. His chest rose and fell shallowly, his eyes wide, lips slightly parted. He had never thought… never imagined… that this was who Rumi had been speaking of. His mind reeled at the sight.

Beside him, Haneul bristled, a low growl caught behind clenched teeth, muscles tensed to strike. Seoha’s jaw set hard, every inch of him simmering with sharp distrust. Seungho’s gaze narrowed, shoulders rigid, one hand flexing like he was resisting the urge to draw blood where he stood.

“Get back, Y/N,” Seoha ordered sharply, voice firm, eyes never leaving the Old One.

The old man tilted his head almost kindly, the faintest smile brushing his lips.

“What are you doing here, Itharos?” Jinu finally rasped, his voice hushed, cracked with disbelief.

Itharos. The name seemed to shift the air, heavy and dangerous the moment it was spoken aloud.

“I’ve only ever seen you in passing,” the old one murmured, his smile deepening. “Hello, Jinu.” His eyes twinkled, and then he bent his head slightly to the side, peering past the barricade of bodies trying to shield you. “And you too, Y/N.”

“You…” you mumbled, breath hitching, your eyes widening as the memory of that mall slammed into you. “What—?”

“He’s the old one we encountered in the mall,” Hwimori growled, every syllable venom. “I didn’t get to land a blow then. Don’t think I’ll make the same mistake twice.”

“Hello, beast,” Itharos smirked, almost indulgent. “You have nothing to worry about. I’m only here because—”

“Get out.” Haneul’s voice was gravel, sharp and cutting as a blade. His stance shifted, ready to spring.

The tension was a fuse, burning fast with both the boys and Huntrix (except for Rumi) crackling with hostility. Shadows thickened, weapons gleamed, and it felt like the room itself was about to shatter from the clash.

But before anyone could move, Rumi leapt forward, arms outstretched, blocking them from Itharos. “Wait—!”

“Rumi, step aside,” Seoha snapped, grit in his voice, anger and panic welded together.

“Wait!” Her voice cracked but carried. “He’s here to help. I asked him to come—”

“This is who you meant when you said you knew someone?!” Haneul barked, incredulous.

“Yes!” Rumi pleaded, eyes darting frantically between them. “Please, he’s the only one who knows anything about what creating the tether means.” 

She looked at Jinu with urgency, almost desperation. “He was the one who told me how the ritual before failed, and how to succeed now. He knew my father. Just—please, let’s hear him out.”

Everyone froze, conflicted. The weight of her words settled like a stone in their chests.

Jinu exhaled slowly, the sound breaking the silence. His expression was weary, heavy with a knowledge only he carried. He finally spoke, his voice low, strained.

“Itharos… how are you here on this side of the realm? I thought all demons vanished when we created the tether. And more than that—” his eyes narrowed, suspicion sharp, “—how did you make it past my wards?”

Itharos chuckled softly, the sound unhurried, condescending in its calm. “You forget how old I am, boy. My essence is not bound to either realm. Nor does it adhere to magic created after its conception. Your wards will not work on me.”

The boys’ jaws clenched, their teeth gritting in frustration.

“You need answers, don’t you?” Itharos’ voice was smooth, coaxing, cutting through the tension like silk over steel. “And I am the only one old enough to provide them.”

Jinu’s gaze faltered. Against his will, he yielded, just slightly. And one by one, the others did too. All except Haneul, whose chest heaved with fury, eyes still burning like fire on the intruder.

Itharos turned his gaze toward him, smiling faintly, knowingly. “I’m only here to explain. To answer your questions. Nothing more…” His head tilted, golden eyes landing on you again, unwavering, unblinking. “Well, that and…” His voice softened, as if savoring it. “To finally meet the tether.”

Haneul’s jaw worked, grinding, but even he at last lowered his stance, though the fire in his eyes didn’t dim.

The girls were slower to yield, their weapons still firm in their hands. Zoey’s blades pulsed, Mira’s grip tight. Finally, reluctantly, they too lowered them, but did not release. Not entirely.

Mira blew out a sharp breath, glaring daggers at Rumi. “You didn’t mention how he was a literal ancient demon, Rumi.”

Rumi smiled sheepishly, wincing. “Sorry. I didn’t think you guys would agree otherwise.”

Everyone groaned or sighed, frustration mixing with unease.

“Look, we need answers, right?” Rumi pressed, voice rising. “He’s the only one who could give us that. Aren’t you at all worried for Y/N? What this means for her? How you’re still here?” She turned to the boys.

Then to the girls. “What happens to us now with the Honmoon gone…?”

Her words struck silence into the room. Everyone’s faces turned, pensive, conflicted, the weight of it pressing down.

Itharos looked at Rumi softly, his expression unreadable, but you didn’t miss the strange look in his eyes.

Your pulse thrummed. His presence was still terrifying, unsettling to your very bones. But… Rumi was right. You needed answers.

Slowly, you stepped out from behind Hwimori, who stiffened at your movement. Your heart hammered, but you nodded firmly. Itharos’ lips parted into a smile, slow and deliberate, as if fascinated by your very existence.

“Let’s hear what he has to say.”

TO BE CONTINUED

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A/N: I hope you guys enjoyed the ending I've chosen! I told y'all that I'm not one for sad, depressing endings. I already planned this ending from the start, so it was such a joy writing this one out and also fleshing out the boys' regret and apologies (desurv).

I'll be flushing out the ending next chapter to clear out what happens next and what this means for all of them.

I hope you guys enjoyed the chapter!

Willa x.

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They saw you.

For a moment, the world stilled. The stage lights, the chaos of the crowd below, the burn of demonic energy ripping through the air… it all fell away the instant their eyes landed on you.

Jinu’s breath caught, his chest twisting painfully as though the soulbond itself had constricted. No. She can’t be here. His mind reeled. How had you slipped past the barrier? Had you been watching their performance, their sin, their descent into the very thing they tried to shield you from?

You looked up at them, the glow of the stage painting your face with fractured light. Pain lived in your eyes, yes, but also something deeper. Something that burned through his fear. Is that… love? Could she love us still, after all this? After what we had done?

And then he saw the determination carved into your features, the kind of resolve he had only ever seen in soldiers before they leapt into death. It broke him open. 

Haneul’s blood roared in his ears. All he saw was you. Small, fragile, too close to the fire. His body itched to move, to run to you, to grab you and haul you back where it was safe. He wanted to scream until you listened.

How long have you been here? Did you see us? Do you know what we’ve done, what we’ve become? His chest heaved with fury and terror all tangled together. It didn’t matter. All that mattered was you. Your safety, your life. The rest could burn.

Seoha’s mind fractured between disbelief and awe. The threads of the bond pulsed painfully, reacting to your presence. She came. Even after everything. She came to us. He searched your face for hatred, for disgust, but what he saw instead was unbearable: pain, yes, but threaded with tenderness.

She still feels something for us. For me. That thought alone nearly sent him to his knees.

Hwimori trembled, torn between relief and devastation. His soul throbbed like it wanted to leap into yours. She came back… she didn’t run from us… she still— But the thought was too dangerous. His claws flexed uselessly at his side. He could smell your scent from here. The look in your eyes shattered him.

Why are you here, sweetheart? Why would you put yourself in this fire?

Seungho’s gaze cut sharp and cold, but his chest was a battlefield. He memorized every detail, the determined set of your jaw, the trembling light in your eyes, the way your hand balled into a fist at your side. She looks like she’s ready to die. Rage boiled in his veins. No. I won’t let her. Not her. Not again.

His hands curled into fists as the bond seared red-hot in his chest.

And then Rumi stepped forward. Her patterns lit like molten silver across her skin, glowing brighter with every heartbeat. Her voice, steady and resonant, broke the silence like a crack of thunder.

“Nothing but the truth now.”

The hymn was not human, it was something older, deeper. Magic pulsed from her throat and wrapped itself around your body, through your veins, igniting your fingertips until your very eyes burned with its iridescent light.

You walked beside her, every step echoing with the thrum of song and spell. It wasn’t just sound, it was a current, raw and endless, tethering to your soul and pulling you forward.

“Nothing but the proof of what I am.”

Jinu’s eyes widened as realization crashed through him like lightning. He staggered back, horror rising in his throat. The beginning note Rumi sang, the hunter’s oath, and now the song to awaken and… you. All steps he remembered decoding himself from Daehyun’s old journal.

The ritual. She’s doing the ritual. And Y/N… she’s here to complete it.

Memories slammed into him, Rumi’s mother convulsing, her body tearing, screams drowning in white fire. The smell of blood. His own voice roaring as he begged it to stop.

“No…” Jinu’s voice cracked. Not again. Not her.

The others felt it too. Panic. Rage. Terror. They had known of this ritual. Jinu had told them of the option before they had gone on stage today. And they had agreed never to touch it. Too dangerous. Too costly. And too late. And yet here it was, unspooling before their eyes with you at its center.

“Y/N!” Haneul’s bellow tore through the stadium, primal and furious. He was the first to lunge, claws sharp at his sides.

“The worst of what I came from, patterns I’m ashamed of Things that even I don’t understand—”

But as he charged, Gwi Ma’s shadow slammed down on them.

The boys collapsed mid-stride, writhing, as the demon’s hold coiled like chains around their chests. Pain exploded through their bodies, searing down their spines. They clawed at the stage, gasping for air, muscles seizing under invisible force.

“Y/N!” Their voices broke, desperate, as they tried to drag themselves toward you.

“I tried to fix it, I tried to fight it My head was twisted, my heart divided My lies all collided I don’t know why I didn’t trust you to be on my side—”

Your body lurched forward, instincts screaming to reach them. To tear them out of the fire, to put yourself between them and their suffering. But Rumi’s hand shot out, gripping your arm with iron strength.

“Don’t.” Her voice was harsh, urgent. Her eyes blazed as she hissed, “This is what Gwi Ma wants. To use them to get to you. To stop this. Don’t give him what he wants.”

Your throat clenched. The sight of them, your boys… writhing in agony clawed at your chest. You couldn’t breathe. Every instinct screamed to go to them, but Rumi’s grip held you fast.

“Y/N!” Haneul’s roar cracked like a whip, his voice thick with pain. The sound of it made your tears spill over.

“I broke into a million pieces, and I can’t go back But now I’m seeing all the beauty in the broken glass—”

The boys’ eyes locked on you, terror in every line of their faces as they watched the magic blaze brighter inside you. They could feel it… if this continued, it would consume you.

Jinu groaned, dragging himself up inch by inch, his body trembling with effort. Around him, the others clawed their way forward, desperate to reach you before it was too late.

And still Rumi’s body glowed, the patterns racing brighter across her skin.

“The scars are part of me, darkness and harmony My voice without the lies, this is what it sounds like—”

And then, another voice. Clear, ringing, from the left side of the stage.

“Why did I cover up the colors stuck inside my head?”

Zoey. She strode onto one of the platforms, her voice carrying strength and conviction. The moment her note joined, something jolted inside you, like a vessel slowly filling, your soul pressing against the seams of your body.

But Rumi felt it first. The resonance. The shift. Her knees nearly buckled with relief. She joined. Even after what I did… she’s here.

The note wasn’t just a harmony, it was forgiveness stitched into melody. It was Zoey saying I still believe in you, without words, without conditions. A lump rose in Rumi’s throat, threatening to choke her mid-song, but she forced the hymn forward, channeling the light in her chest. She trusts me again… she trusts me enough to stand beside me.

And from the right, another voice, solemn and strong:

“I should’ve let the jagged edges meet the light instead.”

Mira. She walked the other runway, her voice weaving seamlessly into the song.

Rumi’s chest cracked wide open. Mira, the one who had looked at her with suspicion sharper than blades, the one who had always carried questions in her eyes. And yet here she was, singing anyway. Lending her power, her belief, her voice to complete the ritual Rumi had begged them to risk.

They should hate me. They should have left me to burn with my lies. But they didn’t.

Her throat tightened as the harmony wrapped around them all, golden threads weaving through the air, binding the three of them in song. It was more than magic. It was mercy. They had chosen to sing with her, even when she had nearly destroyed everything. Even when she wasn’t sure she deserved it.

And that broke her in a way no demon ever could.

The three voices blended. Rumi, Zoey, Mira… into a harmony so raw it felt like the world itself tilted to listen. It wove around you, through you, a song of truth and unmasking. Completion. Activation.

“Show me what’s underneath, I’ll find your harmony The song we couldn’t write, this is what it sounds like—”

Rumi’s tears blurred the stage lights. She kept singing, because she had to, but her heart ached with gratitude so fierce it nearly split her chest open. They had shown up, for her, for you, for all of them.

I don’t deserve them. I don’t deserve this trust… but I won’t waste it. Not this time.

Your lungs seized as they carried out that last harmony, you gasped, body shuddering with the sheer force of it. Rumi’s hand crushed your wrist, eyes locked on your face in alarm.

And then she saw it. The glow in your veins, spreading like wildfire. Your eyes, burning iridescent… the same living colors of the Honmoon.

She didn’t need words. She saw your nod and she understood. Continue. 

“Stop the song!” Gwi Ma’s voice cracked like glass through thunder, reverberating across the stage until the ground itself seemed to tremble. His fiery shadow bled outward, flames licking like living chains, slithering across the floor as if the world itself bent to his fury.

The earth split. And from the chasm poured them… hordes of demons clawing their way into existence. They surged like a tide, faceless and shrieking, their bodies bent at grotesque angles, black mist dripping like rot from their mouths. Some skittered on all fours with insect speed, others towered high, spindly-limbed monstrosities dragging talons against the ruined stage. All of them reeked of hunger.

Your breath died in your throat. The train.

The memory struck like a blade: the screech of steel, the lifeless eyes of the passengers, the press of bodies and claws. You had cowered in fear that moment until your lungs shredded, yet the horror had chased you still. Every sound, every shadowed figure before you now ripped open the scar. Your body remembered before your mind could deny it. The helplessness, the inevitability of being cornered.

No. Not again. Your knees buckled.

Rumi stepped in front of you in a flash of steel. Her arm swept in a practiced arc, summoning her hunter’s blade, the light of it singing as it carved against the darkness. She planted her stance firmly, shielding you, her presence solid and unshakable even as chaos bled from every corner.

And still, the song carried on. Voices unwavering against the storm like they had done this countless times before.

“We’re shattering the silence, we’re rising, defiant Shouting in the quiet, you’re not alone—”

“No!” Jinu’s voice rang raw and ragged, snapping the air like a whip. The sight of you standing there, terror stark in your eyes, trembling from old scars, fed the wildfire inside each of them. Their devotion twisted into something monstrous: an obsession that burned hotter with every heartbeat you suffered.

They couldn’t bear it.

Jinu’s lungs heaved like bellows, each breath burning as the restraints dug into his arms and chest. The shadow-chains cut into his skin, leaving streaks of black fire, but still he pulled, veins bulging at his temples, muscles trembling with the effort. His mind spiraled with a single certainty, a mantra that drowned out everything else: she is mine to protect, always, only mine. Every time your eyes flicked toward the demons, every shiver that raced through your body, the vow rooted deeper into his bones. He would tear himself apart before he let you be touched.

Haneul’s chest cracked beneath the weight of his vow, his ribs straining against the feral roar he bit back. His arms strained against the shackles, shoulders wrenching forward as if brute strength alone could drag him to your side. His teeth ground until they bled, copper flooding his mouth, but the pain only reminded him of his oath: never again, never again will she bleed while I breathe. The memory of you in another life, blood on your lips as death consumed you, seared hotter than any restraint. His body shook, not from weakness, but from fury kept barely caged.

Seoha’s laughter fractured, a sound as raw as it was hysterical, spilling through clenched teeth as he writhed against the binds. His voice broke again and again on your name, a song of devotion that came out shattered. Every chain that held him was a mockery, every second stolen from him a cruelty he could not endure. His wrists twisted, skin splitting, yet still he thrashed like a man possessed, his heart chanting the truth he clung to: she thinks she is free, but her heart already belongs to me. Even bound, he felt it, your pulse fluttering in terror through the bond, and the madness of wanting you only tightened its grip.

Seungho’s silence was sharper than any roar. His gaze sliced like a blade, cold and gleaming, narrowed on every demon that dared step closer to you. His hands curled into fists until the nails bit through flesh, blood dripping down his palms unnoticed. The shadows tightened around his neck, but he did not thrash. He waited, coiled, every muscle tensed like a predator about to strike. In his mind there was only one promise, clean and vicious: no one looks at her, no one touches her. If they try, I will cut them apart piece by piece. His stillness was more terrifying than his rage.

Hwimori trembled, his whole body vibrating with suppressed instinct, every vein lit with the bond’s feedback of your terror. He could feel it… your heartbeat racing, your breath snagging in your throat, the way your soul recoiled from the horde. Each sensation gutted him alive, until his own ribs ached as though they housed your fear. His lips peeled back, a low animal growl rumbling in his chest, the restraints digging into his skin as he twisted against them with jerks too sharp to be human. Her pain is mine. Her terror is mine. I’ll kill them all if I have to. His eyes burned red, the beast inside him clawing against his skin, desperate to be freed.

Madness bloomed between their ribs, uncoiling and unstoppable, because you were theirs. And the sight of you caged in fear broke something inside each one of them, a fissure that no power on earth could mend. The chains might have bound their bodies, but their obsession had already broken free.

Zoey’s enchanted blades snapped into her hands, gleaming silver as they cut the air. Mira’s Moon Blade shimmered with captured light as she spun it forward, its arc slicing like lightning. Their voices didn’t falter.

“We listened to the demons, we let them get between us But none of us are out here on our own—”

They moved like a storm. Zoey’s knives whistled, each one burying into shadowed flesh with perfect precision. Mira’s blade carved long arcs, every strike spilling darkness like ink.

And Rumi… Rumi did not yield. Her sword danced with merciless grace, each motion a strike in a song of survival. She carved demons down with a fluidity that was beautiful and terrifying. Black mist painted her skin, but her stance never faltered.

You stared, stunned. This was Huntrix. Their true selves. Not idols, not girls who only sang, but killers who sang through the bloodshed. It was terrifying. It was awe.

A pang pierced your chest. They saved me on the train. They’ll save me again. Even after everything… I can trust them.

The boys strained against the chains, their bodies arching and muscles searing as if their very souls were being shackled. Each kill the girls had made, each demon that dared to try to get close to you had made them nearly mad with fury. Shadows writhed around their limbs, biting deep, but their resolve only sharpened. They would not… could not, stay bound while you stood in danger. 

Huntrix was strong. But the amount of demons was just too much. They wouldn’t dare leave your safety in anyone else’s hands but theirs.

“Let us go!” Jinu’s voice thundered, raw with desperation, the sound reverberating across the stadium. His eyes blazed gold as he glared at Gwi Ma, each word a sword drawn against him. “You keep me from her. You keep me from protecting what is mine!” His chest heaved, every vein in his neck straining against the force of his fury. There was no more logic left. Only desperation.

Gwi Ma’s laughter slithered like oil through the air, “Pathetic little things,” he sneered, his voice like grinding stone. “You think you can change the ending? You let them come in and attempt what I already told you would fail? The girl will die, as she always dies. And this time, you will watch her burn.”

Jinu’s jaw clenched, the cords in his throat trembling as he pulled harder, the chains rattling under the weight of his wrath. “I didn’t plan this. I was doing everything like you asked!” he spat, grunting in frustration as shadows flared. “You don’t understand what she is to us. You never will.”

Your scream sliced through the chaos, high and terrified. Demons surged around you, teeth gnashing as their black forms crowded closer.

“No!” Haneul’s roar cracked like thunder. His eyes widened in anguish, his body arching so violently against the restraints that blood poured from his wrists. “Not her. Don’t you touch her!” His voice cracked on the last word, breaking through the air like a prayer laced with fury.

Hwimori’s gaze found you through the smoke. The moment he saw your frightened expression, the trembling of your lips, the glassy wideness of your eyes… something inside him broke. He felt it, your fear vibrating down the soulbond like barbed wire. They all did, but for Hwimori it was unbearable, primal. It stripped him of reason, left him only with instinct. Loyal and ferocious. A dog that had been caged too long, now watching his master threatened.

“No… no, no, no…” Hwimori shook, every muscle jerking as his body smoked. His skin blistered with heat, his eyes wild. “Stop!” His voice cracked with a guttural growl, spit flying past his tusks as they forced their way out of his mouth, elongating, sharp and gleaming in the firelight. His back arched, bones snapping under the strain of transformation. “Don’t touch her!” he bellowed, voice deeper, almost unrecognizable.

The boys turned their heads toward him, eyes flashing with both worry and awe as they saw him unravel. Black smoke poured from his skin, swallowing his form until he loomed larger and larger, his body contorting. Claws erupted from his hands, his frame stretching into something massive, monstrous. With a guttural roar, Hwimori’s body exploded into a towering fox-beast, nine tails lashing, his fur a swirling mass of shadow and mist. His eyes burned blood-red, locked only on you.

The beast had awoken.

The chains shattered like glass around him. Hwimori broke free with a sound that was neither beast nor man but something hungering between the two. His massive head swung toward the demons, and he lunged, scattering them with the force of a storm.

Seeing him break free, the others writhed harder, their rage twisting into strength. Seungho’s eyes cut like knives as he let blood drip freely from his torn palms, willing the chains to snap. Seoha’s throat bled with broken laughter as he screamed your name, thrashing so violently his restraints cracked. Haneul’s vow burned through his chest like molten fire, his muscles tearing as he ripped at the binds.

And Jinu… Jinu’s glare fixed on Gwi Ma, golden eyes glowing like suns. His voice dropped, low and trembling with something ancient. “There’s one thing you’re mistaken about.” Shadows cracked around him, his body trembling as the chains split thread by thread. He bared his teeth, his body blazing with light as he finally tore through the dark restraints.

“You think we’re bound by your fate,” he snarled. “But we are bound only to her. And nothing, nothing, will take her from us again.”

“So we’re not heroes, we’re still survivors,” 

Huntrix sang, their voices weaving through the air like steel and silk combined. Mira’s moon blade flashed, Zoey’s enchanted knives spun silver arcs through the air, and Rumi’s sword cut clean as a bell note. Every strike harmonized with their song, every twist of steel igniting the magic that surged into you. Demons fell like wheat to a scythe, the girls’ voices rising into something divine.

But more portals ripped open. From the blackened ground behind you, a crack split wide, glowing red with fire and stinking of sulfur. Shadows surged. You didn’t notice until you heard it, the splitting of stone, the guttural hiss of breath.

Slowly, you turned… and your heart stopped.

Your eyes widened in pure horror as towering demons lunged toward you, hulking things with serrated jaws, skin split by glowing fissures, and arms twisted into blades. Their bodies crawled with writhing worms of shadow, and their eyes were voids, endless and hungry.

“RUMI!” you gasped, voice splintering with terror.

“Watch out!” Mira and Zoey’s voices pierced through the air.

But Rumi wasn’t fast enough.

Something else was.

A massive shadow slammed into the nearest demon, tearing through its chest with a sickening crack. Smoke and blood sprayed as the creature fell in pieces, its body shredded like paper. Another fell, ripped in half by teeth too massive to comprehend. The stage shook under the impact.

You froze in shock, breath caught in your throat as the giant black fox-beast tore through the horde. Its snarls shook the very air, low and guttural, a sound born of madness and devotion.

What was this? What was this thing?

The beast turned, its body wreathed in mist, blood dripping from its maw. Its red eyes burned as they locked onto you, and in that moment, everything inside you froze.

Hwimori.

Your heart pounded, breaking against your ribs as your mind reeled. You saw him, not just here but before. Memories flickering of a fox spirit long ago, glowing and gentle, a companion that had watched over you with loyalty. And now… this. Twisted. Darkened by centuries of pain and loss, his form corrupted into something monstrous. Tears welled in your eyes as grief split your chest.

“Hwi…” you whispered, your voice trembling, caught between horror and love.

The beast whimpered, a low, mournful sound that didn’t belong to a monster, but to the boy you knew.

“Watch out!” you cried as more demons lunged.

The beast turned with a snarl, tearing into them with savage, brutal force. His claws ripped through demon flesh, smoke curling from his body as he tore them apart in showers of blood and shadow.

Rumi tugged sharply at your sleeve, dragging you back. You stumbled, backing away, eyes never leaving Hwimori as he fought like an unholy storm.

And behind you, Huntrix’s voices rose like a blade.

“No lying, I’m tired,” the girls sang, their harmonies cutting through the chaos, their weapons blazing as they carved demons down.

And ahead, the others strained harder against their breaking chains, their hearts and fury focused only on reaching you.

Haneul was the first to break. The old warrior instinct in him surged like wildfire, muscles straining as his arms trembled against the chains of shadow that held him down. His breath left him in ragged bursts, the sound caught between a growl and a vow, his body slick with sweat and smoke. Then, with a guttural roar, the shackles cracked. His chest heaved as he tore himself free, stumbling forward only to gather balance instantly, eyes already locked on you. He held no weapon but he had his claws, his fury, and his promise.

Jinu followed, the crimson threads of the bond writhing visibly along his arms as if lending him strength. His jaw clenched, every vein in his throat standing out as he forced himself upright, grunting in sheer frustration at the restraint holding him from you. His gaze cut through the chaos, straight at you. And with one final, vicious wrench, he ripped himself loose. 

Seoha and Seungho tore free in turn, their desperation carving their escape. Seoha’s lips moved soundlessly, your name spilling like a prayer as his whole body shook, his skin crawling with barely restrained power. Seungho’s eyes burned pitch-black as he ripped apart his binds with a motion so violent it sent a shudder through the floor beneath him. 

One by one, they burst forward, their bodies shaking with the frenzy of being released too late, too long.

And then they were in it, hurling themselves into the massacre.

Huntrix’s song filled the stadium, harmonies blending with steel. Their movements had a rhythm, a choreography born of trust. But beside them, the boys fought differently. Not graceful, not united. Brutal. Wild. The stage cracked beneath their blows, demons screaming as they were ripped apart by claws, smoke, and raw power.

They weren’t here to help Huntrix. They weren’t here for the world. They were here for you. And only you. They had to get to you before you’d reach a point in the ritual of no return.

Jinu ripped through the horde with nothing but his hands, his eyes glowing faint amber as threads of crimson light crackled around him. Each punch landed with the force of a blade, each movement cutting a path straight toward you, straight toward the center. His every step was fueled by rage and obsession, the singular need to reach you before you made contact with all of them. Because once you had, it would be too late to stop it.

Seungho fought like death itself, his body cold and unrelenting. Shadows thickened around his fists, coating them like armor, his every strike shattering demon flesh and bone into dust. He snarled through the blood and mist, gaze snapping toward you between kills, as if checking every heartbeat that you still stood.

Seoha’s movements were sharper, controlled yet frantic, his voice muttering broken fragments of promises as smoke and charm-like illusions exploded from his hands, disorienting demons before he cut them down barehanded. His expression twisted between devotion and despair, his focus never leaving you, as if he could draw you back to him by sheer will.

Hwimori tore through the hoards with fangs and claws. A beast to behold, snarling at any demon that dared get between you and him. A fierce loyalty and desperation driving him closer and closer to you.

And Haneul… he was relentless. Centuries of war lived in his body, his every move calculated but soaked in rage. He grabbed a demon by its throat and snapped it in two, then spun, eyes wild as he lunged across the stage. He was making for you, each kill a step closer.

“Y/N!” he shouted, voice breaking, desperate, as he saw you slowly make your way closer to Mira and Zoey. His chest heaved, fury darkening his face as the girls dragged you inward, toward the center, toward the moment of no return.

You staggered with them, your pulse racing. You saw them across the carnage, your boys cutting through demons in their madness, and the girls ahead of you, determination warring in their stares.

“No—Y/N—don’t!” Their voices clashed with Huntrix’s song.

“But dive in the fire, and I’ll be right here by your side—”

The lyrics burned through you as Rumi yanked you forward, your body colliding with Mira and Zoey in the center. Their arms wrapped around you, the three of them pulling you into a joined embrace.

The moment their skin touched yours, something lit inside your chest.

It was like every nerve burst into flame, every thread of your soul tugged taut. The magic clicked into place, painful and radiant. You gasped as a rush of energy surged through your veins, your heartbeat syncing with theirs, your body glowing with blinding light that forced even the boys to squint against its brilliance.

Three voices. One heart.

“No…!” someone screamed from across the stage.

The girls pulled back, eyes locking with one another. In their stares, a thousand unspoken words bled through: fury, forgiveness, acceptance. A love born of bond, trust hard-earned and somehow found again.

You felt it. Forgiveness. Belonging. A choice.

The boys didn’t stop fighting. They couldn’t. Demons still poured onto the stage like a living flood, and they cut them down with everything they had, tearing, clawing, obliterating. But their eyes never left you. Their voices broke in fury and fear.

“We’re really doing this,” Zoey whispered, her breath shaky but firm.

“I don’t quite understand what all this is…” Mira muttered, raising her blade again, “but I know what I have to do.”

Then, together, all three pairs of eyes turned to you. “Are you ready?”

Your breath hitched. The magic swelled inside you, tethered to their voices, their touch. Yet your heart tugged, mercilessly, toward the demons who loved you, who screamed your name as if it alone could break fate. “I–”

“Y/N!” The cry ripped across the chaos of the battlefield. Haneul’s voice, raw and desperate.

Power surged through his body, muscles straining, eyes blazing. He broke free of the hoard first, of course he did. The warrior. The protector. His fists whistled through the air in a single, merciless arc, cleaving through the demons that swarmed him. The air filled with the sickening crack of bone, the hiss of black blood spraying the stage. He cut them all down, fury and desperation guiding every strike, until nothing remained between him and you.

His chest heaved, eyes burning as they locked on you, and then he lunged.

But Huntrix were faster. Mira pivoted, her Moon Blade flashing like silver lightning as she blocked his blow with a clang that shuddered through the stage. Sparks leapt from the clash.

“You can’t stop this-!” Mira grunted.

Haneul’s voice cracked as he shoved against her blade, snarling. Her words falling on deaf ears. “Y/N, don’t do this!” His eyes darted to you even as he fought her, wide with terror, with longing. “Don’t throw yourself away!” The plea was carved in centuries of desperation. “I won’t lose you again!”

The ground trembled as more of them broke through the hoards of demons. Seoha and Seungho erupted into motion, finishing off their opponents. Seoha’s smoke wafted through the air with lethal precision, glowing crimson with his fury. Seungho’s claws tore through shadows, each strike brutal, feral. They turned, and when they saw you at the center of it all, their faces twisted with a singular focus: Taking you back.

“Come with us!” Seoha shouted, his voice echoing like a vow across the blood-slicked floor. His eyes gleamed with something both broken and unyielding. “We’ll protect you, we’ll keep you safe!”

Seungho roared, slamming a demon’s head into the ground before tearing it apart with his bare hands. “You’re ours. We won’t let you be taken from us again!”

The girls met them head-on, steel against claws, power against desperation. Blades clashed, magic sparked, and still the boys shouted, their voices raw with pleading.

“God– you guys are the most STUBBORN demons I have ever met!” Zoey yelled in frustration, dodging Seungho’s claws. 

You watched as Rumi dodged a blow from Seoha, kicking his shin. Zoey yelped as Seungo tried to grab her throat. Mira was grunting, strength faltering at the sheer force that was Haneul.

Through it all, your own scream tore the air apart. “This is my choice! You can’t take this from me…Like you’ve taken everything else!”

The words struck like lightning.

Every one of them faltered. Swords slowed, punches stilled, claws hesitated. Even Jinu and Hwimori— who had only just finished slaughtering the demons around them, stilled in place as your voice echoed, sharp and shattering.

The air grew heavier. Gwi Ma’s laugh rumbled, deep and mocking, as more demons spilled forth from the shadows. Flames erupted high, burning meters into the air, licking the ceiling of the stadium. You turned your eyes towards his looming flames.

“You really think you can defeat me?” the Demon King’s voice thundered, every syllable dripping with scorn. “Change your fate? Save them all?”

Your knees trembled, fear gripping you like ice, but you refused to let it show. You lifted your chin, glaring at the towering inferno of his form. He was the one who had taken everything again and again. The one who turned your loves into monsters. The one who forced them to kill and suffer. The one who laughed as you died in lifetime after lifetime. The one who thought he could use you to control them. Use you… to get what he wanted.

Hatred burned through your veins, but stronger still was your resolve. “You think I’m powerless,” you said, your voice steady even as your heart pounded. “You think I’m just a damsel destined to die over and over again…”

Gwi Ma’s laugh shook the earth, cruel and certain.

But your resolve didn’t crack. “But you overlooked one thing.” Your voice rang out, clear, piercing through fire and steel. “You let this soul bond happen. You allowed it to grow strong. Strong enough to instigate your ruin. And for that, you’re the fool.” You spat. “The one thing you could never take from me despite my constant deaths…. is my love for them. No matter how many times you’ve broken us, I still choose them. And this time, I choose to save them. Even if it means giving everything.”

The boys froze, staring at you as if the ground had been ripped out from under them. “And that… will be your downfall.”

Seoha’s breath caught, his claws lowering slightly. He had spent his life crafting illusions, manipulating emotions, but here you were, the one person who had every reason to hate him, still choosing love. His chest ached, a sharp pang of self-loathing twisting inside him.

Haneul’s grip on Mira’s blade trembled. He had promised himself never to fail you again, and yet here you were, showing a courage that dwarfed his own, a strength that made his protection feel like nothing. He had unleashed destruction before. You, instead, chose sacrifice.

Seungho’s expression broke, fury softening into anguish. He had always been possessive, his love sharp-edged and selfish. And yet, you, after all their sins, still loved them enough to risk your soul.

Hwimori’s great form stilled. His chest rose and fell with ragged breaths, every instinct in him screaming to protect, to cling, to never let you go. Yet as your words pierced the air, his claws flexed uselessly against the ground, his tail curling tight. And for the first time, he felt powerless to shield you. You were the one shielding them. His wild heart quivered, torn between the instinct to cage you close and the awe of realizing you loved them enough to give yourself away.

Even Jinu faltered. Jinu, who had always clung to control, who believed fate bound you to him unshakably. He saw you now not as someone shackled to him by destiny, but as someone strong enough to choose despite everything. And you were choosing goodness. Choosing the world. Choosing them.

And for once, he was the one left powerless.

You turned to them, eyes blazing. “This is my choice. Mine. And no one, not even you, can take that from me.”

Their faces fell. Crestfallen. For so long they had tried to bend your will, cage you, keep you as theirs. But here you stood, unyielding, and they realized: if they stole you away now, they would lose you forever. If they let you go through with this, they might lose you anyway. Either way, you had already chosen.

It cracked them open.

Rumi’s voice cut through the silence, steady and sharp: “It will work this time, Jinu. We have the three voices… and your bond.”

Jinu turned on her, eyes blazing like he could burn her alive. His jaw clenched, as though every part of this was her fault.

But then you whispered, soft yet unshakable. Eyes wide with unshed tears of frustration and desperation. Pleading. “Trust us.”

Those eyes. The same ones he’d seen as you begged them not to go through with this. The same ones that haunted him ever since you had found out the truth. Now he had a chance to make it right. 

Jinu’s amber eyes locked on yours, his body trembling. Slowly, he reached toward you, but Mira and Zoey stepped in front of him, blades ready.

“It’s okay,” you breathed, lifting a hand. The girls hesitated, then stepped aside.

Jinu closed the distance in a heartbeat, his palm coming to rest against your cheek. His touch was warm and gentle, as if you might break beneath his hand. His voice shook.

“When it comes to losing you… I don’t know if I can.” His eyes slipped shut, jaw clenching tight. “I swore I would never let it happen again. Not after all I’ve done. Not after the blood I gave to keep you tied to me. I can’t—”

You covered his hand with yours, your gaze softening. “Jinu,” you whispered, “it was your will, your blood, that forged this bond. You thought you were chaining me to you, but you don’t see… you gave me the strength to stand here now. You have to trust that bond. Trust me. For all my lives I’ve been powerless, dying again and again while you suffered. But not this time. This time I can do something to end it. For you. For all of you.”

Jinu’s breath hitched, his grip trembling as though your words cut him open.

Seoha’s voice came low, from behind him, threaded with anguish. “You think you’re saving us, but all I see is you throwing yourself into the fire. I spent my whole life weaving lies, breaking hearts, because I thought that was the only way to keep what I loved from leaving me. And still, I lost you. Every time.” His eyes shimmered, lips pressing into a crooked, trembling smile. “And yet here you are, loving us enough to set us free, even when we don’t deserve it.”

You turned toward him, tears spilling, but your smile was full of love. “Seoha, you’ve always wanted to make me believe in the dreams you spun. Let this be the one dream I’ve chosen for myself. Please… believe in me now.”

His composure cracked, his claws flexing helplessly as he looked away, unable to bear it.

Haneul stepped forward next, his feet dragging against the ground. His voice was hoarse, raw with terror. “I swore to protect you. To keep you safe, no matter what. But what kind of protector lets you walk into death? I can’t—” His throat closed, his eyes red, his chest heaving. “I can’t watch you burn, not again. Not when I’ve already destroyed you once with my own hands.”

You reached for him, cupping his cheek the way you had before, pressing your forehead against his for one trembling moment. “Haneul, you’ve carried that guilt for centuries. But this isn’t you destroying me. This is me choosing. This is me saving you, like you’ve tried to save me over and over. You’ve protected me enough. Let me protect you now.”

A sound broke from him, low and agonized, as he nodded, though his eyes begged you not to ask this of him.

Finally, Seungho pushed forward, his movements rigid, as though his body fought against the choice he had to make. His voice was cold at first, but his eyes betrayed him… wet and burning. “I wanted you all to myself. Always. If I couldn’t have you, then no one could. That’s who I am. That’s all I know. But…” His voice cracked. “…if this is what you want, if this is the only way you’ll stay with us, then I’ll tear apart the world just to keep you safe while you do it.”

You lifted your hand to his chest, feeling the frantic beat of his heart beneath your palm. “Seungho, I’ve always seen you. All of you. Even the parts you hate. And I still love you. Let this be enough… for both of us.”

The weight of your words silenced them all. The fire, the demons, even Gwi Ma’s laughter seemed distant now, drowned by the raw, breaking sound of their breaths.

Your tears fell freely as you looked at each of them, your voice shaking with years of pain and lifetimes of loss.

“I’ve died over and over again. I’ve felt your pain, your grief, your rage each time. And I understand it… I understand you. But I can’t let it go on. Not for me. Not for you. This is my choice… to take back the power we never had. To end the cycle once and for all. Just as you’ve always wanted, but could never do. Let me. Please.”

Your body shook as the words left you, your chest rising and falling with sobs, but your eyes blazed with a love so fierce it left them breathless.

And one by one, they bowed to it, shattered, but accepting.

Haneul was first, jaw tight, eyes shining with fear he couldn’t hide. He lifted a hand, brushing your cheek with trembling fingers. “We’ll hold them back,” he murmured, voice cracking. 

You cupped his cheek and pressed a kiss there. “Thank you.”

Seungho swallowed hard, his fists clenching as he looked at you. His eyes, always sharp with cruelty, were now wide and wet. “Don’t you dare die on us,” he rasped.

Seoha exhaled, shoulders slumping as he dragged a hand through his hair. His smile was crooked, pained. “Even now, you still surprise me. I… I’ll believe in you.”

Hwimori whined from behind. He didn’t speak, he couldn’t. His eyes alone said it all: fear, love, desperate devotion.

And finally, Jinu. His amber eyes met yours, and for once there was no command, no control, only surrender. He gave the smallest of nods.

“I love you. All of you.” You whispered, voice breaking as you looked at them. The boys who had been your curse and your salvation. 

Then, you turned to the girls. The expressions on their faces stopped you.

Mira’s lips parted slightly, her Moon Blade still drawn but trembling in her hands. For so long, she had believed demons were incapable of love. That they could only hunger, devour, corrupt. But the look on the boys’ faces now, the desperation etched into their every breath, the way they shattered before your choice… it was not hunger. It was love. Terrifying, twisted, selfish, yes, but love nonetheless. She felt the certainty she had clung to splinter, and for the first time, she wondered if she had been wrong.

Zoey’s eyes softened, brimming with something she hadn’t expected… sympathy. Her heart tugged painfully as she looked between you and them. She had always seen them as monsters who caged you, but now she saw the cage wasn’t built of cruelty alone… it was fear, grief, devotion so consuming it bordered on madness. And still, you loved them. Still, you chose them. Her throat tightened, because she finally understood just how impossible your choice was… caught between the world and the boys who had given everything, even their souls, to keep you.

Rumi exhaled, relief washing through her tense shoulders. For endless moments she had feared the boys would never bend, that they would drag you away again and ruin everything. But seeing them yield, seeing them finally listen to you, lifted the weight from her chest. The bond between you all was terrifying in its power, but now she understood: it wasn’t only chains. It was trust. And maybe, just maybe, that was enough to finish what her father once dreamed of.

They said nothing. They didn’t need to. The silence of their shared realization was louder than any battle cry.

Mire sighed. “Then, let’s do this.”

They joined hands around you, forming the circle. You looked to each of them and all shared a smile. Then, the girls began to sing.

“You fools!” Gwi Ma bellowed, shadows writhing, but it was too late. More demons poured forth, hoards upon hoards, crashing onto the stage like a tidal wave. And the boys moved instantly, springing into action to protect you as they formed a five-pronged shield around you and the girls.

Steel, claws, and smoke. Each one fought with everything they had, bodies weaving into a ring of destruction around you.

The song rose…

"We broke into a million pieces, and we can't go back But now we're seeing all the beauty in the broken glass…"

Their voices wove into harmony, power thrumming through your chest like a heartbeat. Soulbond threads ignited, glowing brighter than ever, searing you from within. Light filled you, pain and beauty all at once.

And as Jinu glanced back and saw your body begin to glow, fear twisted his face. His teeth clenched, memories of Rumi’s mother’s body splitting apart clawing through his mind.

Still, the girls sang.

"Why did we cover up the colors stuck inside our head? Get up and let the jagged edges meet the light instead…"

Their song was a spell, and you were its lock.

Your eyes shut as the tether pulled you apart, your soul screaming. Magic surged, tearing and stitching you at once, every nerve aflame. And still, you held on. Because this was your choice.

You opened your eyes into chaos, demons crashing against the boys’ fury, fire and shadow tearing the air, blood spraying black across the stage.

And you thought: Now. It’s now or never.

Haneul tore into the nearest horde. Every strike crushed through bone and armor as if they were paper. His veins glowed faintly with power, his movements swift and merciless. A demon lunged at his side, he pivoted, caught its jaw, and ripped it clean off with a snarl.

Seoha flicked his fingers, crimson magic crackling like glass shards through the air. Illusions flared, phantoms of himself darting between enemies, confusing and scattering them before the real Seoha struck with burning precision. One demon howled as it slashed at nothing, only for Seoha’s claws to dig into its spine from behind.

Seungho was pure brutality, his body a storm of smoke and feral rage. He slammed a demon into the ground, claws ripping through its chest, before whirling to gut another. Every movement was savage, primal, his lips pulled back in a snarl as black blood coated his arms.

And Hwimori, your heart caught at the sight of him. Towering in his soul beast form, his fur streaked with glowing markings, eyes burning red. He crashed through demons like a hurricane, tail whipping bodies into the air, jaws snapping through flesh and bone. A beast made flesh, terrifying and beautiful all at once.

“Gods,” Seoha panted between strikes, dodging a blade of black fire as his illusion shredded another demon. “I don’t think I’ve fought this many of these fuckers in a long while.”

Haneul grunted, tearing his claws through a demon’s chest. “And you’re still complaining.”

Seungho kicked a demon so hard its spine cracked against the stage wall. “Feels like home, honestly.”

Hwimori let out a deafening roar, shaking the rafters as he crushed two demons beneath his massive paw.

Seoha smirked even in the chaos, glancing at him. “Careful… Hwimori’s getting drool everywhere again.”

Seungho barked a sharp laugh, ducking as another clawed at him. “He’s more beast than man tonight. Someone throw him a bone.”

Hwimori growled low, his eyes cutting to them, offended. His massive tail lashed, knocking three demons into the fire.

“Easy, puppy,” Seoha teased, snapping his fingers to ignite a demon’s face in flame.

Another guttural roar tore out of Hwimori’s throat, a sound that made the air quake.

“Alright, alright,” Haneul muttered, lips twitching despite himself. “Less jokes, more killing.”

Behind them, Huntrix moved in closer. Mira, Zoey, and Rumi turned their backs to you, shoulders squared, weapons drawn, but voices alight. Only one or two demons managed to slip through the carnage, and each time, the girls struck them down with swift precision.

Mira exhaled sharply, blade slick with black blood. “Never thought I’d be killing demons… with demons.”

Zoey huffed a laugh, spinning her dagger before plunging it into a demon’s chest. “Don’t tell anyone. Ruins the aesthetic.”

“Well technically,” Rumi stated, slashing her sword into a demon’s neck, “You’ve been fighting alongside me for years so…” 

Mira’s mouth twitched in spite of herself, and she swung her Moon Blade upward to cleave another in two.

But then the air rumbled. Gwi Ma’s growl rolled like thunder, shaking the stage. Flames burst higher, and new demons poured forth, larger, uglier, more twisted than before. Their claws gleamed obsidian, their jaws dripping venom. The boys braced as the new horde surged forward, but their eyes never left you.

And you— You felt it. The tether.

It pulled at your chest like a vise, ripping and stitching at once, your soul screaming against the weight of it. A coil wound tight inside your ribcage, squeezing until you gasped aloud, hand flying to your chest. The world blurred, fire and steel, and still the ancient magic pulsed.

It was time. The choice.

The magic demanded you close your eyes, to either reach for it or let it go. Your breath shook, your body trembling, and then… you took it.

Your hand clenched against your heart as you seized the magic and let it pour into you. It coursed like fire in your veins, like molten light flooding your lungs. You gasped again, almost doubling over, eyes snapping open wide as a searing brightness erupted across your chest.

“Y/N!” Jinu’s voice cracked, full of panic, as he cut down a demon trying to reach you. The others turned too, their faces filled with raw fear.

“Y/N?” Zoey asked, her voice tight.

“I’m fine,” you grit out between breaths, chest heaving. You clenched your teeth. “I can take this.”

Because you could. You had endured lifetimes of agony. Fires, blades, poison, every death imaginable. This pain was nothing compared to that.

You straightened, forcing yourself to ease into the magic as it roared through you. And then, you felt it. The soulbond tugging at your heart, pulling outward. Your eyes widened as the light on your chest shifted, burning into a blood crimson glow.

It was time.

When the time comes, call out their names one by one.

Your gaze swept the battlefield, and your heart found him… Haneul.

He was a storm, cutting down demon after demon with his bare hands, his body a wall between you and destruction. A warrior sworn to protect you, even when you didn’t need saving. You loved him for it, the steadfastness, the certainty, the way he’d burn the whole world down just to keep you safe.

“Haneul,” you whispered.

The air cracked. He froze mid-strike, his body locking as his eyes snapped to yours. A thread of crimson light shot from your chest to his, tethering you together. His gasp echoed above the chaos, his body suddenly wrapped in a shimmering crimson sheen. Demons clawed at him, but their blows bounced harmlessly away.

He couldn’t move his body. All he could do was surrender to you, to the bond, as his feet lifted from the ground with yours. His gaze held yours, unblinking, surrendering.

You gasped, the magic urging you on. “Seoha.”

His head snapped up instantly, illusions shattering around him as the crimson thread seared into his chest. His smirk faltered as the glow covered him, his illusions multiplying in brilliance until they lit the stage. His body stilled mid-step, eyes fixed on you, as though nothing else existed.

“Seungho.”

The crimson light whipped across the battlefield, striking him like lightning. His body jolted, claws dripping with black blood, before the sheen spread across him. His knees buckled, but the bond lifted him, freezing him in mid-air opposite you. His sharp gaze softened, lips parting, undone by the power of your voice.

“Hwimori…” Your breath trembled.

The beast froze. His ruby eyes widened as the crimson thread tethered him to you. The glow erupted across his fur, every marking lit aflame as if carved in starlight. His massive body lifted, paws hanging in air, his eyes locked to you. For once, the beast simply surrendered.

Each name steadied the bond, each soul flaring brighter and brighter until you felt them anchoring you, holding you even as the magic tried to tear you apart. This was why you needed the soul bond for it to work. They had to anchor you through this. 

And every time you called a name, Gwi Ma’s fury grew. His growl was an earthquake now, his flames boiling higher, hotter, until finally… with a roar, he pulled demons back, sucking them into his body. The air warped as his flames ballooned, stretching massive, monstrous, his form swelling with their strength.

Huntrix froze mid-fight. Jinu’s claws dipped. The boys, tethered, could only stare in horror. The Demon King towered, fire twisting into something more terrible than before.

“The ritual cannot defeat… me!”

The growl of Gwi Ma was monstrous, shaking the stadium to its foundations. The girls’ singing faltered as his flames twisted upward, gathering into a single beam of crackling, magenta-dark energy. In an instant, it shot straight toward you.

“No!”

Rumi was closest. She sprang forward, her sword glowing faintly as she planted herself in front of you, blade raised to catch the infernal beam. The impact reverberated like thunder.

“Rumi!” Mira and Zoey’s voices tore across the stage, panicked, as demons clawed at them from behind. They slashed back desperately, unable to get to her side.

“Keep… singing..!” Rumi’s voice strained through clenched teeth, her arms trembling as the beam pressed harder and harder against her sword. Sweat streaked down her brow, her knees buckling, the sheer force driving her backward.

Jinu snarled, tearing through the remaining demons in his path. He leapt into the air, whisps of energy snapping wide, but before he could reach you, demons swarmed his torso, dragging him down. His roar was deafening, his body thrashing against the weight of them.

The boys tethered in the air could do nothing. Their bodies were frozen in the crimson glow, powerless to move without breaking the ritual. They could only watch, agony twisting their faces, as your eyes stayed closed, your body trembling, holding desperately to the bond.

The magic was a raging storm inside you. Every nerve felt flayed raw, every vein flooded with molten fire. You clenched your teeth, head thrown back as you forced yourself to endure it. Hold on. Just hold on. You had suffered death a hundred times, and you would not break now.

“No!” Rumi screamed, her sword bowing under the pressure, cracks splintering down its glowing blade. Her muscles shook violently, the power far too strong. She couldn’t fail. She couldn’t… she had to be the third voice, she had to protect you.

And then, all at once, her scream was cut short.

A larger shadow loomed over her. She stumbled forward into a slump as she realized the pressure had lifted. Her eyes widened, flicking upward.

Jinu.

He stood in front of her, his back turned to the blast, his body a shield against the torrent of power. The beam slammed into him full force, tearing at his flesh, eating away at his form like smoke unraveling into the wind.

“Jinu!” Rumi’s voice broke, horrified. “What are you doing?!”

He grunted, muscles quaking, his body cracking with light as the beam chewed through him. “What does it look like?” His voice was strained, but unyielding. It took everything in him to hold on. And he would. He would give himself just to protect you.

Your eyes flew open at her scream, and when you saw him, saw him sacrificing himself again, giving everything to shield you, you felt your soul crack.

“No… no!” Panic surged through you, tears spilling as you saw the beam scorching his skin, dissolving him piece by piece. His roar of agony ripped through the air, primal, unrestrained, as he struggled to contain it. It was happening again. He was breaking himself for you.

“Jinu!” you screamed, your voice shaking the stage.

A crimson thread shot from your chest, piercing directly into his. His body froze, the bond searing across him as he too was tethered to you.

The moment it latched, the crimson sheen spread across him, shielding his body in the pact. The beam bent, rebounding back, crashing into Gwi Ma’s own form with a thunderous crack.

The Demon King staggered, flames writhing violently, bellowing in rage. And then—

The tether was complete.

All five of your demons were bound to you, their crimson threads blazing across the stage. The magic anchored you in place, lifting you higher into the air, their souls fueling the torrent inside you. 

The light surged so bright it was blinding. Their voices, their lives, their love… it all pulsed within you.

You surrendered to it, to them.

“If this is what it means to be yours… then let me be the tether.”

And then the music swelled—

“Oh, hey This is what it sounds like Oh, oh, oh Hey, hey This is what it sounds like…”

The crowd, breaking from their trance, began to sing with Huntrix, their voices amplifying the magic. The ritual thrummed louder, stronger, a chorus of souls uniting as one. 

The girls ran to the center, their voices alight as they too were lifted into the air, their bodies glowing with the blue hue of souls. Ancient magic wrapped around them like threads of starlight.

Rumi glanced up at you, heart hammering. This was where it went wrong, she thought. We can’t let it fail this time. We have to keep singing.

“We broke into a million pieces, and we can’t go back But now I’m seeing all the beauty in the broken glass…”

The magic inside you burned hotter, searing your veins, flooding into your blood. You gasped, clutching at your chest, your body writhing with the effort of containing it. Every breath was fire, every heartbeat thunder. It tore through you like knives, like being split apart from within, yet you held on. You had to.

Your skin blazed, emitting beams of white light so bright they swallowed the stage. The brightness engulfed Gwi Ma, who howled in agony as it consumed him. His flames fizzled, his form unraveling, sputtering into nothingness. Around him, the demons shrieked, their forms flickering before dissolving into ash.

But the light inside you was too much.

“Aahh!” You screamed, body convulsing, as the power ripped through you. Iridescent threads burst across your skin, glowing sigils etching themselves like living brands. The magic tried to tear you apart, light exploding outward in violent bursts.

The boys panicked. Their voices thundered across the bond.

“Y/N!” Hwimori’s roar shook the air.

“Stay with us!” Seoha cried, his voice cracking.

“Don’t you dare leave!” Seungho bellowed.

“Please!” Haneul begged, his voice raw, desperate.

And Jinu screamed the loudest. His terror split him open, his voice ragged with memory. He saw it again, the same light tearing Rumi’s mother apart, her body disintegrating into dust before his eyes. His mind shattered with it, the horror of losing you the same way clawing at his throat.

“Stop it now!” Jinu bellowed, his roar shattering against the walls. “It’s too much for her!”

But Huntrix didn’t stop. They couldn’t. Their voices rose, hands intertwined, bodies glowing brighter as they poured everything into the song.

“Show me what’s underneath, I’ll find your harmony Fearless and undefined, this is what it sounds like…”

Your scream broke into song, your voice uniting with theirs, even as the light consumed you from the inside. It tore at your flesh, your soul, every part of you burning, breaking. You anchored yourself to the bond, clinging desperately to the five threads that tethered you to them.

But the agony kept building, pressing against the edges of your existence until your vision flickered. The thought crept in, sharp and merciless… was it too much? Was this where your story ended? Would you dissolve like Rumi’s mother, your body unraveling into ash and memory? Was this what she had felt… light so beautiful and terrible it devoured everything?

Your chest heaved, every breath a ragged gasp as your mind clawed for them, for the boys. If you failed here, if the light burned you away, they would lose you again. You pictured them reaching into the smoke with empty hands, their souls screaming against the bond as it snapped. 

You imagined Jinu’s broken face, Haneul’s howling grief, Seoha’s illusions shattering with his heart, Seungho tearing himself apart, Hwimori keening like a wounded beast. You dying again, leaving them behind. Would they survive it this time? Or would your end finally unmake them completely?

Tears blurred your sight, not from the searing pain, but from the weight of the thought. 

If this was it, at least it was your choice. For once, you weren’t a pawn, a victim bound to fate or their desperate love. You had given this your all. If you died now, it would be because you chose to. That truth wrapped around your despair like a thin comfort.

The irony hit you, jagged and cruel. You were just a normal girl weeks ago. A girl who thought love was something fleeting, fragile. And now here you were, suspended in ancient magic, sacrificing everything… for demons who had loved you across lifetimes, who had broken and bled for you, who had chained themselves to you in devotion so twisted and real it defied every law of the world. 

Your heart clenched as the light split you further, and the thought whispered through you like a farewell: This is my goodbye. My last song. If I burn here, at least it’s for them.

But through the roar of the magic, through the blinding agony, their voices bled into you. Not spoken aloud, but echoed across the tether.

“Don’t you dare leave me.” Seungho’s voice, ragged and furious, trembling beneath the weight of desperation. “I’ll rip the heavens apart before I let you go again.”

“Please, stay with us… stay with me.” Seoha’s whisper cracked, stripped of his usual charm. “Don’t let this be the last time I see you breathe.”

Haneul’s voice thundered, yet it broke with a sob he couldn’t hide. “I swore I’d protect you, and I can’t protect you from this. Don’t leave me powerless again. Don’t—” His words faltered, raw and human beneath the warrior’s steel.

Hwimori’s cry was a keening wail, wordless at first, the sound of a beast in mourning. And then, softer, trembling: “I’ll die if you die. I can’t… I can’t exist without you.”

And Jinu, his voice tore through them all. A roar, a prayer, a plea. “Not again! Y/N, not like her, not like before! You are not ashes, you are mine, do you hear me?! You are mine!” His rage gave way to breaking, desperate sobs that rattled your very bones.

The bond burned with their grief, their terror pouring into you until you could feel their tears, their panic, their shattered hearts beating in time with your own.

And yet, as you floated at the edge of nothingness, you thought, if this was it, then at least they would know I chose this. That my last act was for them, not stolen, not forced.

A mortal girl swept into something endless and terrible, now burning herself alive for the love of demons.

If this was my end… it was mine.

And then… the song ended.

The white light detonated like a supernova, swallowing the stage, the stadium, everything. The demonic energy shattered, Gwi Ma’s presence annihilated. The crowd broke free from their trance, gasping, weeping, screaming as if waking from a nightmare.

“Y/N!” Jinu’s roar was broken, desperate. They dropped from the tether to the ground, knees hitting the stage hard. The light consumed everything, blinding, unrelenting.

The boys cried out, reaching, convinced you had been burned to ash. Just like before. Just like Rumi’s mother.

Jinu’s scream tore through the void, raw and shattering, as the light devoured all trace of you.

TO BE CONTINUED

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A/N: Dun Dun DunnnnnI hope you guys enjoyed this! The events and emotions are so heavy on this one. I'm sorry for ending on another cliffhanger, but idk I like keeping you guys on your toes, I'm sorry! Also- there's quite a lot of individual detail here regarding the boys because I wanted to give you guys a glimpse into what each one of them is thinking, their reactions, their fighting, etc. I think it digs deeper into their characterizations, and I always want to stay loyal to that.

Also finally got to unleash Hwi's beast form at lasttttt. I had that one in my pocket for a while.

I hope you guys enjoyed the chapter!

Willa x.

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