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“Do you know how much we’re risking meeting this late?” The night enveloped the two of them in its cold, middle-of-September breeze, with the moon illuminating brightly on top of them. The two individuals who stood their ground seem to stare at each other very closely—a short exchange of brief silence, except not so much? It was hard to tell due to the glances. Ridiculous how these two creatures met in the middle of the night yet stayed in different skies and tread different grounds. They were outside their respective homes facing one another like friends when they shouldn’t be at all.
It was already painfully difficult to keep themselves hidden for so long, but none could do. If the two wished to stop the hostile forces from making a move, they would have to risk everything, including their meeting at places and times like these. The angel shrugged after hearing the devil’s whisper. My, did that sound so ironic to him when that is what they do to people. “I want to see you, but that’s not just it. I did get a hold of some restricted information that could end the war between our kinds.”
See, this is where the angel used his wits. Somehow, all of these meetings helped him realize how the prince of the underworld himself didn’t seem so bad at all. He’s not so nice either, but the angel felt like the devil was similar to his father’s subjects: humans, who lived with desires and ambitions.
“For an angel, you are too stubborn to listen, are you? Would you mind explaining why you are behaving the latter? Treading those grounds might be difficult and dangerous for you.” There, there, the devil had to scold the angel again. It’s not like this never happened before, but so many of their secret meetings were already done by pulling themselves out of their consciousness. They always met in the same coffee shop, as it was their favorite place in the mortal world. It was also where they first met and decided to end the ongoing war for good. As of the moment, the souls tethered to their bodies were basically floating in the space of some spiritual plane. They were currently neither alive nor dead; no one should clearly see them besides their own kind.
The angel shrugged again, seemingly liking to respond non-verbally than speaking for himself. “I already told you, it’s a critical matter. That’s entirely the reason why I called you here.”
“Hyunjin,” the devil called him as the angel continued to indulge himself from the cup of parfait in front of him. Where he got it is still a question, perhaps, what they need to talk about is more important than his cup of sweets. The angel immediately acknowledged the unspoken thoughts of the creature in front of him, so it didn’t take him too long before he stopped paying attention to the sweet treat. “What is this classified information do you speak of?”
There was a pause, and when Minho thought it could only last for a few seconds, it exceeded more than that. It only meant one thing: Hyunjin’s habit happened again. The angel spaced out while he was asked. It was one of the habits that even the devil noticed when Hyunjin was afraid or overthinking. He usually flicks a couple of his fingers or waves them in front of his face to pull him out of his trance, but this time, he lets Hyunjin be for an additional time. It shouldn’t be a matter of time anyway; they could stay on this plane for an hour or two, it’s just him rushing him because after all, the more they prolong the war, the more Earth is risked to its eventual collapse.
Perhaps, the angel was too tired of his duties and needed a bit of rest, but he had to call him—the devil prince to tell him something with so much importance in exchange for his rest.
“Oh,” Hyunjin’s head continuously bobbed everywhere, looking in every direction he could. “I’m sorry, I was too occupied. Did you ask something?”
“I asked about the classified information you received,” the devil sighed. In the back of his head, he was worried for the angel. Hyunjin seems to be suffering more than him, the mere devil prince of the Underworld. They seem to be equal in position, but Heaven is under great stress right now, at least caused by the sectors of people who wish to abolish Heaven. Perhaps, this was the core reason why the war broke out. Heaven and Hell were separated into two, and sadly, Earth’s been its coliseum of war.
“Minho,” the latter angel finally called him by his name, never expected yet here the two of them were. “They plan to break Earth using the Spears of Asmodai. I truly believe you are familiar with this type of weapon? I heard they came from Hell, created by your leader himself.” The Spears of Asmodai was another level of total destruction, and that was according to their historical records of usage, exactly as stated. Minho’s ancestor, Asmodai, annihilated the pre-historic reptiles almost two hundred years ago and guided the meteors to hit the land and the sea to eradicate them. If they were to plan to do that again, Earth would be nothing but barren land and over a death toll of billions, erasing their existence from the planet immediately: a complete wipeout. Similar to the fashion Asmodai eradicated the creatures.
It would seem like someone out there snapped their fingers together and ceased everyone’s existence into nothing, completely ruining something the Heaven had hardworkingly built. Ironic, isn’t it, when it's their own creators—ones that gave them life, who will take it from them? Moreover, had it seemed justifiable when the Heaven plans to do it? What is the difference when they use an object from Hell, created by someone who fell from Heaven as well?
Curiosity filled up Minho’s mind in an instant. However, there was no way in hell would he ask Hyunjin all of that out loud. There doesn’t seem to be any point and right judgment when it’s the Heaven. What Heaven thinks right now is whatever they are doing is right when it shouldn’t be.
The devil shouldn’t expect less.
There are really those heartless angels from Heaven who was just as cruel as those from Hell.
“Do you have any plans?” Hyunjin shook his head, it’s not like it was easy to come up with a solution to a problem that appeared out of nowhere. Hyunjin’s the angel of knowledge, in one question he gives many answers. A very rare occurrence however led him to have no answers. Only a few times did he not answer a question, and that is when it’s about a mortal’s death or what goes beyond their lives, the situation that unexpectedly unfolded. It is clear the two of them didn’t expect this move to come from them, and it was only a mere fraction of a moment before the mortal world started to fall apart.
The coffee shop brought a little shiver to the devil’s human-like soul form. Of course, he’s a little vulnerable to that simply because the weather was naturally cold during midnight, the machines were not making coffee either. It’s the middle of the night, and there’s no one else inside the place except the two of them. It’s very implausible to see any other person out here late at night.
“What are they thinking?” The angel stayed silent, giving a few seconds to examine the area. Minho was keen on Hyunjin’s actions; he couldn’t agree more, but the surroundings felt a little too suspicious. Minho experienced being followed a number of times he could no longer count them, and this one was no different. He needed to stay vigilant to avoid the risk of being exposed, letting his own words come against him.
The next gush of wind that welcomed the duo’s faces seemed colder this time, colder than how the devil usually feels during a late-night visit to the shop. Someone could be lurking, watching, or listening to them. As of the moment, Minho’s senses were already on high alert. A simple movement from the corner of his eye could mean potential danger to him and the angel. While they are indeed half-immortals, they had to finish and carry out the plan of restoring everything back to its orderly state. No one in the two sectors of the war is willing to do so. Shouldn’t the people who maintain the balance of the planet be responsible for this as they served the land with calamities as their reason being, that they simply deserved it for being so sinful? Ironic, how it’s the balance that makes the most sins in this war.
Minho listened closely, lips sealed, saying nothing to the angel in front of him of potential dangers that was about to rise.
His senses didn’t fail him. They had onlookers, one from a distance away from the closest lamp post near the entrance of the shop and another one behind him. The one behind was a little too far, he couldn’t be seen immediately at first glance. It was only them, the less eyes, the better it was.
“It seems that we have a guest with us,” Minho cleared his throat after finally assessing the situation. He stood up and made straight eye contact with the one in front of him, a few distances away. He couldn’t let the angel be in danger because he’ll end up blaming himself for not protecting him because the being in front of him is already—as much as he hates to admit, perhaps, his friend. There is no chance in a millennium that he’s letting someone important in his life get hurt.
Minho proceeded to warn Hyunjin, whispering a request with caution. It was not the usual playful side of his, it was the commanding yet worried one that barely anyone in the mortal and underworld sees often. “Please, go hide. I don’t think you’ll like to see all of the nasty things I’ll do if they ever cross the line.” The angel almost knew what was about to come, so he insisted on staying. It seems that Hyunjin noticed them, too.
“I saw them earlier,” the angel bravely answered, his tone objective and full of authority towards the other suspicious party. “So I’ll stay. You can do all the talking.”
The devil glanced at the angel. One could say the roles were reversed for the angel became too stubborn when the devil only wanted the angel to hide for his own safety. But the devil respects the angel’s decision, and while he wants the safety of the two of them to be prioritized, having another something to talk these two onlookers away should be a reasonable idea.
Minho cleared his throat once again, his devil prince persona coming forth. His eyes glow bright red—angry, dark red only if he’s either with Hyunjin or he’s unbothered, and the former will only mean one thing to the ones within his proximity: he will resort to violence if he must. For now, the venom on his words shall welcome them. “What do you think is Asmodai going to think of you, traitor? How low can you get, teaming up with the angel of knowledge?”
“Funny how you really don’t know me personally yet throw these words like they’re little toys.” Minho laughed, leaving Hyunjin watching beside him, clueless about everything. It wasn’t his fault, but Minho hid everything about his family’s history from others and that included Hyunjin as well. Revealing them right now may seem a betrayal of trust to the angel after all, so Minho has to brace himself for the consequences of his action.
The devil prince menacingly smiled, a situation that seemed dire for them earlier abruptly turned in their favor. He sat on the chair he was from earlier and motioned to let the guest sit in front of him. Hyunjin was also invited to sit as if they were about to discuss something very important. “I wonder how would you react when the one and only son of Asmodai is born from an angel mother?”
As far as Hyunjin knew, Asmodai only had two sons, and that’s Minho, the being beside him, and another one Hyunjin had the name forgotten. It seems that the leader and king of the Underworld that many people look after falling in love with an angel, they bore a child and he became the next heir of the Underworld. He’s still just as cruel, but his love for the woman transcended centuries. His father had written so many letters for her that stretched for very, very, long years. Asmodai was an unkillable devil but so did his passion burn so much for her.
Asmodai’s son, Minho, always felt his difference. He has long accepted that once the truth is out, his own people might betray him for he’s not pure-blooded. His father trained and taught the prince, letting him live instead of leaving him to die. Asmodai had secret meetings with his lover before until they were caught and the angel was punished for treason. She was fatally executed right in front of Asmodai, and there was nothing he could do.
After then, he focused on giving Minho the best care he could, despite being cruel to others at times to make Minho just as responsible. His father had goodness in him. It was almost questionable because after all, he leads the Underworld, a world full of sinners. In evil, he had kindness and Minho felt that.
Only now, he’s returning the favor of setting things straight and keeping the balance intact.
“Asmodai is—”
Minho’s eyes twitched. He knew what these low-life demons would say and that he’s with us, supporting our movement when he did not, in fact. “He’s against it yet each one of you still continued. Do you know what this means for the Underworld and all of you, specifically?” The devil prince could joke—that they will be placed in Hell, but that couldn’t be as effective because they technically live in Hell, but he decided not to. He could play around with these little low-lifes but Hyunjin nudging his thighs meant to stop there as they have more important business to discuss.
“You will descend down the void where no one else will hear nor see you. All of you, who attempted to continue this stunt.” Minho had no issues with blackmailing or telling the harsh truth to people he disliked, especially these demons who manipulated the balance of life. This was not the only way to fall back into equilibrium.
The two demon’s red eyes flicker, squinting with Minho’s threat. “As we told you, fighting for balance is useless. Asmodai is with us.”
There’s actually one item in Hell that could force a person to speak of nothing but the truth and reveal them. It’s the broken compass, particularly owned and made by Minho himself. During Minho’s creation of the compass, a few drops of his own blood gave the item its crack; for reasons unknown, he was still clueless as to why his blood affected the compass that way. The red pointer seems to be imbued with a portion of the devil prince’s power from his blood. The compass remained to be vital in cases of despicable liars who are asked about something despite being in presence of the leader and his advisors. Minho remembered his father telling him to bring the compass anywhere in case he experienced an emergency.
His father wasn’t wrong on that case, after all.
“If the broken compass stopped turning, I shall take both of your lives. If it continues spinning, I will leave this place immediately and join you.” The broken compass never failed Minho, nor could it fail him now. It was a gamble, but life has always been a gamble, hasn’t it? This was no different from everything else mortals and underworld creatures experience, except this time, Minho is bargaining more than one does normally.
The devil prince calmly placed the compass on the middle of the table, the four of them surrounding the said compass. There’s no special mantra or complicated ritual to be done in order to control the object, he simply brought the compass out and wasted no time and promptly asked the question of whether Asmodai supported their movement to rebel against Heaven and create havoc. The hands inside the compass automatically rotated erratically.
The compass immediately responded with its floating dial frantically moving around, changing directions from clockwise to counterclockwise every once in a while. It only took a few seconds before it stopped, at least for three seconds, before it moved again. One of the demons simply smirked, and Minho was starting to get pissed, but strangely enough, his face wasn’t so obvious that he was. All the devil prince wants now is to wipe that grin off their faces after realizing that their fates were already sealed off.
The floating dial stopped again, this time, it was longer than three seconds. There was this unspoken rule from the usage of the compass that if its pause exceeded more than ten seconds, the accused was guilty. They have no choice but to accept their fates and provide their end of the deal.
The second pause lasted for fifteen seconds. It seems that the answer has been laid in front of him. His father never changed and always kept his word. It was very clear from the judgment of the broken compass there was more than enough reason for Minho to pursue their punishment for treason. Another one descends to the void, it seems.
“So?” Minho grinned with contentment, a perfect time to collect his end of the deal. It was just about time these two demons fell exactly where they ought to be: straight to nothingness, the Void. If Minho would take time to analyze their plan, he’d mostly comment on how their efforts were futile and too reckless, and their coordination and execution of the plan were too superficial. They were most likely not associates of the original plan, or if they were, they simply messed it all up.
After all, facing the son of Asmodai and lying to him directly is the worst situation that anyone could possibly imagine and place themselves in.
The demons’ faces flushed with fear. The cat—the tiger, is now out of the bag. “I swear, a messenger from Hell told us Asmodai sided with the cause! That was our motivation to go by ourselves!” Their lies could only bring them this far, and in all cases, one should always be cautious.
They don’t have what it takes to be powerful in their own rights. “How could you believe something you were told immediately without confirming its source?” Knowing his father, he would never send some messenger to deliver such huge news to someone. If it was connected to an allegiance or participation in anything important, he would go by himself. Unless he was very busy, there was no way he would send a messenger in his stead.
The prince will deal with the messenger pretender later. For now, he had to concern these two demons first.
Minho merely sighed, off to another decree of punishment. “Off you go. Oh, and before I continue,” the devil prince mumbled a few words and whispered his next words to Hyunjin, who was still beside him, yet appeared with no surprise on his face after watching the scenes from earlier unfold. “You can close your eyes if you don’t want to see them get dragged from here to deep below.” Hyunjin shrugged, letting Minho know it was okay for him, at least through his stare and his non-verbal cues.
Minho took the response from the angel as a confirmation and dragged both of the demons down immediately without any warning, their screams echoing until there was nothing left of them. All that happened within a blink of an eye.
“Do you think we’ll be followed?”
Minho cautiously stared at the front of an empty plate that used to be filled with cookies earlier. “We can be, but they didn’t seem to be part of the main movement that unbalances the system. It’s like they acted all in their own to fix the matter on their own hands, which of course, took them here to there, ” and look where that placed them into. Their screams are sealed in an empty space of nowhere, and no one will discern them. There was a price to pay and that was their existence.
It could be ruled out they were not involved, perhaps, one of the demons revealed they knew Asmodai joined forces with them through a certain messenger and they felt powerful enough to venture out.
The prince had already seen so much of these he remained unfazed but perhaps, he was surprised with the angel the most. Reason given he’s the angel of knowledge, he must’ve known all of these processes ever since before they even met. After all, knowledge could eventually, and perhaps, entirely, return the world to become equal once again.
“They lived a life full of sins, perhaps, this was the punishment deserving to them.” Death was still certainly an option, and that could never disappear. The balance will remain if death and life exist, such impartiality lives on. Having without one or the other will plunge the world into chaos. It’s very best to keep the laws of nature to be still, with no one or nothing against its path to equilibrium.
Had he, the prince of the Underworld, pulled out one of his daggers for an attack, the angel of knowledge must’ve taken him into some kind of prison. The Heaven has that thing, too, except Hyunjin told him how that place didn’t feel as if it’s from Heaven. “Minho,” the devil’s train of thoughts came to a sudden stop, all of his attention brought to the angel.
“What else can you tell me about Asmodai’s spears?”
Minho whipped another look at him after staying silent for a few seconds. “Where did we leave it off?”
The angel shook his head with a slight smile. Oh, he was kinda cute.
Great, just to literally throw it all out there for everyone to see. It was so out of place, like the state of Heaven and Hell right now.
At first, the devil prince couldn’t believe he said that, even more so now he’s usually meeting him in secret. But oh boy, was he so attracted to him. Should it be weird, especially when he’s an offspring of an angel and a devil? He did, he found him very attractive, actually. It’s just not the right time to confess, or at least not the best way he could.
They had to hold the balance or everything else built on Earth would eventually tear down. The two sides of the coin, Hyunjin and Minho, both had mutual goals of setting everything back to normal as it usually did. Minho’s confession can wait and keeping the balance cannot. Billions worth of mortal lives are at stake, his emotions shouldn’t be on his way as of the moment.
The angel pondered for a while. It really seemed that he liked to think of solutions and come up with them unexpectedly, like a full-force yet solo brainstorming method. That’s always been how Minho described it as. “Oh, did they believe the enemy could pull out a much stronger weapon than the spears, perhaps?”
“That is simply an illusion. There is nothing else stronger than the spears but Asmodai himself.” The weapon was told to be created from Heaven, as explained by Minho’s father. Anything against the weapon and from Heaven will simply be of the same nature and strength.
“How would you stop them?” For instance, Hyunjin could think of some game plan that would change the entirety of how the game is played. He could—
“I don’t know.” Minho had to be scared. He is worried and left speechless after Hyunjin answered him too quickly and immediately; after all, the angel of knowledge is clueless and does not know the answer. It means the problem is on another level—one that he may not think of such possibility, he cannot answer nor understand and that in itself makes it the most dangerous threat for them to solve. “Do you think we could destroy them, or better yet, could you take it away from them and give it back to your father? Would only devils be able to hold such weapon?”
“To its full potential, yes. Anyone who is not a devil and dares to touch the said weapon will either turn you into stone, ash or will eventually eat your moral senses—if ever they were strong until that point. The right and wrong can no longer be deciphered during those times.” The spears were not free from curse. It was bestowed that the spears themselves choose the user thoroughly and every result in account was merely an observation.
Hyunjin’s eyes narrow into slits. “I have quite an idea for you.”
It simply piqued interest in Minho’s mind. “And what is that?”
“You can ask your dad while I can ask mine, or we can ask only one. Perhaps, we can ask your father in this case as there is something he needs to retrieve that is rightfully his.” That was the most ridiculous reasoning he had ever heard from the angel of knowledge himself. But it was the most reasonable answer the angel came up with. Was the situation truly out of hand, resorting to the need to ask the current leaders of both places?
It was time for Minho to get confused. To where is the angel going for? “Are we not going through this by ourselves, no matter the case?”
“It was you who said the spears were dangerous, right? We need to subdue them to our maximum capacity, ” and that simply meant terminating the possibility of destruction and havoc that could potentially bring the world down, where humans still live. But how would they ask the two of them to give support to their dispositions?
Bringing him in wouldn’t be difficult as there had been many devices and old artifacts that would protect someone visiting Hell, whether a business was involved or not. It’s the persuasion and process they will agree on. If Hyunjin ever notices his father’s requests to have more advantages for Hell than Heaven, the proposal might be off. He has to be careful, of course.
Maybe, or maybe that would not happen. He could take Hyunjin to him, and hopefully, his father would see him nothing hostile to them.
☆
It was today.
Minho brought Hyunjin in front of the gates of Hell itself, his home.
It wasn’t an exaggeration to say his father, along with his sibling, Changbin, welcomed Hyunjin with warm arms.
Minho asked Hyunjin to wear a cape to hide his angel presence so that people from the Underworld would not pay attention to him. He also wore a bronze ring on his ring finger that would protect him from physical contact from the ones from the area. Only Minho and his father would be able to make contact with him. He also warned him of his appearance, after all, his father is very cautious with how presentable he is to his guests.
“Are you telling me your father takes the form of his younger self?” Hyunjin was bewildered. He should’ve known Asmodai would take it to an extent, not that he was questioning such decision but the angel knew he was certainly surprised by this discovery.
Minho laughed as a reply. It was always the same reactions from others who find it out and it made it quite facinating to him. “Well, it is not impossible. He is millions years old, but he does like to look young. He reverts back to his old self at times, however. I’m simply telling you because he is millions years old, yet looking in his late-30s.”
Given Changbin saw the ring on Hyunjin’s ring finger, he bothered not to make contact and simply smiled with a wave to welcome him. The younger one felt too good to be here. Changbin was more angelic in nature than Minho, and despite being brothers, he was the definition of there is kindness, there is evil, while Minho remains to be the opposite of that.
Asmodai shortened the welcoming as he gestured all of them inside their lair. “Hyunjin, meet my brother Changbin and father, Asmodai. He goes by the name Kento in the world of the mortals, if you’ve heard. Seems that we caught him in a form of his younger self as I expected. You can call him with both names, any of which you prefer.”
Asmodai snickered. It was the least expression Hyunjin imagined for him to do. “Minho, don’t embarrass me in front of our guest.” Minho merely laughed in return, and he continued speaking to Hyunjin.
“Please, come in. Make yourself comfortable. You must be Hyunjin, the angel of knowledge? I’ve heard a lot from you. Things from the past, perhaps. I believe we have something very important to discuss as Minho mentioned.”
It feels unreal for Hyunjin to be here in the first place. Of course, devils like Minho could sense fear in people, and it is indeed lingering within him, but not so much as he trusted the prince for so long. He was still a little weary, and he could not help it, after all, he is dealing with something different than the usual kids from Heaven and the elderly in their own halls of the same place.
“Please, sit. I’m quite sure you won’t say here for too long, but is there anything you want? I can ask someone to bring you something. Maybe tea, for you? The Garden of Eve grows hibiscus flowers. Perhaps, you’d like to try the hibiscus tea? A lot has taken liking to that tea.” How had he known? The hibiscus tea was his favorite, his former caretaker had let him drink some of it and from then on, his love for the tea grew. The last time he drank such tea was already two years ago, and it wasn’t the same tea he first drank. He even when to an extent of growing hibiscus flowers in his own home but he couldn’t replicate the taste of it.
“Sir,” Hyunjin quietly mustered up the courage as he noticed the stares all over him. “Will you perhaps tell me if someone from Heaven has visited Hell?” Of course, there has been one, but Hyunjin wanted to confirm this information. There was a face of surprise from Minho’s father, of course, but that did not stop him from calling his son away.
“Minho,” his father called and Minho looked at him with an immediate questioning face.
From that point forward, Minho knew very well his father was talking about his late mother. “Does he know?” The prince simply nodded as a confirmation.
“I see,” Minho stayed silent as he watched Hyunjin and his father remain silent. There was no doubt from his father that he sensed, perhaps, he trusted Hyunjin as much as Minho did. “Yes, there has been one, deducting the ones who trespassed. There has been only one besides you who was allowed.” Asmodai laughed with the urge to continue.
“The reckless angel who managed to steal the heart of the damned leader of the entire Underworld, bore a child and adopted another. She’s the one who loved harvesting hibiscus flowers for a child she takes care of back in Heaven. She had never mentioned the name, but I wish she did as I do want to see who and where the child is.” Hyunjin’s lips parted in surprise. He was that child. The reason why it tasted different was because the flowers grew in a different environment. There should be no other way to replicate them the same way.
Hyunjin gathered his courage to speak, once more. “Sir, I am that child. I was under Lavina’s care.” Lavina was the name of the angel who died for falling in love with the head of Hell himself, Asmodai. It was considered treason, and she was executed. She never told him where she got the flowers for the tea but Hyunjin being oblivious to all this made him feel a little smaller.
“It is you? No wonder, your eyes lit up when I mentioned the tea. Oh, my dear Avi, if only she wasn’t so stubborn about keeping on visiting as I instructed her to, she would’ve lived longer. Until this day, I wish we had been different and met through different circumstances.” There was one obvious and prominent emotion Hyunjin felt as Asmodai spoke. There was also guilt and remorse for the loss, an emotion he would never expect him to exhibit. It was faint, but Hyunjin knew it just existed right then and there.
“But the past is the past, we need to move as we do not want to keep you lingering any longer inside Hell. You may feel a little safe, but I want your safety to remain a priority. What is this important thing we shall discuss?”
Minho answered this question. “Your spears were unearthed, father. They are possessed by someone wrecking havoc on Earth by making two sides fight against each other. The mortal world became their battlegrounds.” The prince explained earnestly, all according to how they both examined the situation. Now, looking at it, the situation seems like it is already out of hand.
For a moment, Asmodai was confused. “I had made sure the seal to where the spears are located. They were ensured to be at their maximum security. You say it was possessed by someone from the Heavens? Has the curse not reached their minds yet?”
Hyunjin understood him. With all the explanations that Minho told him, the possibility is close to nothing. The creator confused with his own creation must be worrisome to an extent as Hyunjin believed it. “The degree of the security breach is impeccable, it seems that a certain punishment must be served. I’ll see what I can do with that later on, but for now…”
“It feels impossible, but we guarantee you, it has already happened and is still currently happening. I’m afraid the balance will completely topple to one side if it’s not stopped.”
Hyunjin couldn’t read Asmodai’s mood, as if it was veiled. He doesn’t know whether he would pick up that he’s feeling either angry or pensive. “The spears were created to protect the Underworld from possible invaders and potential risk to this balance we all practice, it was not created to cause irreversible damages and turmoil to the mortal world.”
The angel of knowledge, of course, had to know whether his idea could work. How entirely feasible must it be to make it happen? “Would there be any possible way to retrieve them?”
Asmodai begins to wander through the explanation Minho told him after Hyunjin offers him a possible solution. “If they are currently held by someone, they must be taken away personally. They were built so that its user and the spears would not detach from one another. If I may describe it, the overall process is morbid, and there will be a need to fight for it. After all, the influence of the spears is immensely authoritative.”
“Isn’t it too risky for Changbin?” It was true, only Minho, Hyunjin, and his father were familiar with the craft. Besides, there is no way he would let his younger brother place himself in a position where he is risked. They could half the job, he would retrieve it, and Changbin will be the person to receive and take care of it.
Minho glanced at Changbin once more. He would, in fact, risk his life for his brother. And though he is adopted and he loved making playful arguments with him, he still cared, and he would not let anything happen to him. “I started this, I believe I should be the one who shall end this as well.”
That was not wrong, after all of the things he had done for the cause.
“This way, I can prove that I am worthy of your position.”
His father laughed, and Hyunjin noticed there was something with him. He was proud of Minho and it was something Asmodai couldn’t simply hide. “You already are, Minho. There’s no need to prove yourself for you already did, simply by existing and tending to the needs of your own people.”
“Alright, now that is set, I have to clarify to you, Hyunjin, that we can’t and will never form an allegiance with the angels as we both stand on neutral grounds at all times. In this case, however, equilibrium is shaken and there is a need to set everything back to where it once was. This is not a case of one side, the two sides must both be responsible for this.” Asmodai nodded in agreement as he sat back on the wooden chair. Hyunjin had known this better, and he nodded with his reply as well. The Heaven and Hell never mixed, and the angel of knowledge knew that better than anyone else.
“Minho can retrieve the spears and Changbin will take care of the rest after. You, Hyunjin, shall stay somewhere safe as we cannot let the influence of the spears affect your purity. In addition to this, I believe Minho will have the capabilities to be immune to the spear’s control. Still, I heed warning as you venture into this retrieval.” Hyunjin should be utterly surprised with how smoothly the discussion went. He had himself mentally prepared for any fights or persuasion speeches, but it seems that neither of those should be needed anymore. “I will tell you everything I know about the spears and how to take them from someone who should not own nor use them.”
☆
“Have you ever seen your father? He was so liberated and he seemed accepting.” Hyunjin wasn’t wrong in describing Minho’s father like that. All he’s heard of him was everything evil he did. Perhaps, there is actually more to the story than what he knows, after all, there are still so many things he does not know about the world. The behavior and history of many are just one of those.
Minho snickered. “He may be old but not too old to accept new norms in our society, no?”
“When you met, it felt like you two have met before. So tell me, have you met him?” The prince asked to satisfy his curiosity. His father had been open to all yet it felt as if Hyunjin’s case was a little different than the rest. Hyunjin was a very caring and respectful individual, it would seem impossible for his father to treat him differently, no? His mother was of the same kind.
The angel gave him a glance. He had never met the leader of the Underworld because he was still feared by most angels from Heaven, and that included Hyunjin still being cautious under the leader's presence. There was no point in meeting him as no crucial nor urgent reasons were given. “Never. What do you mean by this?”
“There’s no point in lying when you’re facing the greatest liar of your kind, you know.” Indeed, Minho gave that title to himself. He could lie in front of other liars but had sworn to never lie with something so trivial, like the ongoing war. He had no point in doing so.
Hyunjin laughed, oh, the ever suspecting prince. “I am always like this, what's new?” The angel had his chance, and he took it. Perhaps, the devil has always been too kind to the angel. At these moments, they both knew their words were laughable to an extent. It was simply bantering between the two of them, a dynamic common to both.
The angel did not hesitate to continue, as urged by Minho himself. “I just knew where he’s coming from, at least in a diplomatic and understanding sense. Besides, he must’ve heard some things about me from my caretaker, Lavina herself.” Lavina liked taking care of children, and Hyunjin was one of many angels in training, their capabilities were honed until they were ready.
“Hyunjin,” the tone of bickering stopped. That was when Hyunjin knew it was about to get serious from then on. “Yes?”
Minho breathed heavily and Hyunjin believed he knew what was about to come. “I know we both heard of what my father said. Only I will retrieve the spears not simply because I’m powerful, but because I am immune to the harm that it will bring. Coming into close contact with it might make you do unthinkable things. I don’t want that to happen to you.”
“I am still the villain in the eyes of many, and I shall uphold to that role until the end of daybreak. Only evil can punish evil, and you are not evil, Hyunjin. I love you as who you are, but we have important responsibilities we must carry.” The newfound purpose and war they will soon fight for carried a fervent will that Minho felt through his veins. In between that, he confessed to him, and Hyunjin somehow felt his heart flutter.
It was sudden; Hyunjin wanted any other moment—probably after this war, for Minho to confess. Right now, the angel of knowledge wants to reciprocate these feelings away, but he is at loss to simply say the words.
“I did say it, didn’t I?” The question from Minho made Hyunjin laugh softly, nodding in agreement. It was these moments he wanted to pause and keep to himself, forever.
They were about to become the next, it seemed. The next beautiful mistake.
“There is a need to keep the balance intact. I don’t want the world to suffer just because we’ll have our time.” Hyunjin knew there was no other answer than this, and despite being so difficult to leave, they had to. For the sake of the world and avoidance of disrupting the peace, they must leave each other and keep the balance.
Perhaps, in evil, there was kindness. And then, there was love. If Minho was going to break one rule, it's going to be with Hyunjin. After all, the apple does not fall far from the tree.