"Wait!" He suddenly called out, but Heuk Jin continued walking.
"Did he not hear me?" He squinted his eyes.
"Call him again," she rolled his eyes at him.
"Hello? Stop! Hold on!" He called out again, this time louder, but still Heuk Jin didn't even pause.
Eun-ji ran after him till she caught up with him, tapping his back, "Hello?"
Heuk Jin stopped to look over his shoulders, "Yes?"
"My brother has been calling after you," she panted in short shaky breaths.
"Really? Oh I am sorry," he faced her properly, "I do not hear any sound that is behind me."
She tilted her head backwards, "Hm?"
"So has he agreed or something?" He rubbed his neck.
"Yes. He has."
"Why is he standing there then?" His eyes fell on Ha-joon who was folding his arms across his chest, tapping his foot impatiently on the ground.
Eun-ji spiraled around, "Get over here! Do you want to keep standing there like some old grumpy witch?"
Ha-joon rolled his eyes, dragging himself to where they stood, with a grim expression on his face.
"Please forgive my brother for being so rude. He actually has some trust issues," Eun-ji rubbed her neck nervously.
"I understand. I can not blame him though," he chuckled.
Eun-ji felt her heart thumping fast, "Oh."
"Is something wrong?" His voice interrupted her train of thoughts.
She swallowed, intertwining her hands together, "I just think that.."
He battered his lashes, "Hm?"
"I think you are really.. handsome," she rushed the last part.
"You already said that though," he reached out to ruffle her hair, "You are very beautiful too."
Her heart leapt when she felt his hand on her hair. It felt so comforting, too comforting infact.
"You think so?"
Her eyes gleamed at the thought of him finding her pretty. Just the thought of it created endless butterflies at the pit of her stomach.
Soon Ha-joon came to join them, "Eun-ji," he grabbed her wrists pulling her to himself.
"I have already told you. Be careful around here."
She drew her lips out in a pout, "Why? He seems very nice. Why are you still so hostile towards him?"
Ha-joon glanced at Heuk Jin who was already giving him an amused stare.
"Until we know how trustworthy he is, we can not be so free with him yet."
She rolled her eyes, crossing her arms across her chest, "Alright fine."
Heuk Jin just shook his head, and kept walking away, "Living people can be so hard," he muttered, clenching his jaw.
Eun-ji kept stealing glances at Heuk Jin whenever she could, and each time she did, she thought he looked hotter than before.
"What is that horrible stench?" Ha-joon grimaced.
Eun-ji also inhaled sharply. Her face went pale, her stomach churning.
"What is that?" She almost puked.
Ha-joon scanned the area hoping to see where the stench was coming from.
"Roar!"
Eun-ji froze in her tracks, her eyes grew wide with shock as she heard the sound coming behind them.
Ha-joon immediately recognized it, "Fuck!" He gritted his teeth.
Eun-ji slowly looked over her trembling shoulders, her teeth clattering.
It was a group of shamblers.
"Ha-joon? Wh- what are we supposed to.. do?"
The shamblers took some steps forward before leaping at Eun-ji who they perceived to be the weaker one.
CRACK!
Someone kicked the shambler who had leapt twice at the neck, causing its neck to break.
Eun-ji was still frozen to the spot, her blood gone cold. Her head turned to the side to see who had given the shambler such a powerful kick.
It was a girl her age, but looking more slender, and tougher too.
Soo Min-ji looked her way, whipping her crescent blade out, "Are you okay?"
She managed to mod, "I am fine."
Ha-joon blinked at the rest of the shamblers who were headed their way, "I do not think they are ending anytime soon," he sucked his lower lips in.
Soo Min-ji looked back at the group of the shamblers, then at Heuk Jin who was peacefully walking away without a care in the world.
Of course he didn't hear any of the commotion behind him.
"Give me a second," she patted Eun-ji's head, then rushed over to Heuk Jin.
"Huek Jin!" She tapped his back when she reached him, "I could use your help here!"
Heuk Jin looked over his shoulders, his eyes landing on the multitude of shamblers ahead of them.
"Now, why exactly are they so many?!" He locked his jaw, already feeling tense.
"I do not know, but I do know we have got a lot of work before us," she took his hand dragging him along with her towards the shamblers who were still coming in their numbers.
Eun-ji almost passed out, "They are the same creatures! Why are they here?"
Ha-joon kept his calm trying to calculate a few moves in his head.
"Ha-joon what do we do?" She turned to her brother who was still rubbing his chin in deep thought.
"It seems their neck is their weak point,* he drawled.
"So if we charge at their neck,"
"They would be weakened," a small smile curled at the corner of his lips.
"We can do this Eun-ji, just stay calm, and stay behind me."
A tap on his shoulder jolted him out of his thoughts.
"No. Stay behind us. We do not want anything happening you," his smooth voice rang into thier ears.
"Come on Min-ji," he held her hand, "Let us go."
The shamblers soon came closer but stopped as soon as they were a few meters away from them.
"What?" Min-ji furrowed her brows into a deep frown.
Five of the shamblers at the forefront suddenly broke formation, moving in eerie unison to trace the shape of a star on the cracked earth. The one at the pinnacle of the formation raised its bony fingers and carved glowing symbols into the air, each rune pulsing with a sickly, bluish light.
BOOM!
A blinding flash exploded above them. The very air seemed to ripple and tear open, like fabric splitting under pressure. From the heart of the light, space twisted inward, folding upon itself until a swirling vortex appeared—dark and endless, rimmed with jagged arcs of electricity. The hum of unstable power filled the air, making Min-ji's skin crawl.
The shamblers had just opened a portal.
"What is happening?" Min-ji gawked at the portal above them.
"Oh no, this is far from good," Huek Jin swallowed hard.
Min-ji snapped her head to look at him, "What do we do? This is a bad sign already!"
Before they knew what was happening. Golden rays of light began to emanate from the ground where Min-ji stood upon.
"What is happening?!" She shrieked.
Huek Jin's jaw fell to the ground, "Noo!" He thrust his hand trying to grab her hand out, but it was already too late.
The rays of light turned into a full burst of golden beam of light leading directly to the portal above them.
In order to stop them, Huek Jin ran as fast as he could towards the star sign formation, but it was useless.
Min-ji had already been transported to the portal.
"Oh my gosh!" Eun-ji cried, placing her palms over her mouth, tears pricking at the corner of her eyes.
The shamblers then receded back into the ground, while the star sign formation just vanished into the thin air.
Huek Jin stood there, his left eye twitching, his right hand trembling.
'They have gotten stronger!'