Healing Castle | TXT Fantasy Novel ft. BTS

18 - Huening Kai

"Why are you doing this? It's late at night, Yeonjun still isn't back—we should be looking for him. And besides, we haven't had dinner yet."

Huening Kai squats in the alley closest to the apartment, under the light of a closed bubble tea cafe. His only focus is on three stray cats that follow every hint of movement. When he tilts his hand, the gray one in the center inclines his head and meows. The two others, white with brown patterns, seem to blink at the same pace as Kai. The imitation seems to escalate with every spare piece of chicken Kai offers them.

This is where he belongs—feeding stray cats. He wants to forget about the role of being Seoul's warrior, even if it's just for the moment.

"Yeonjun will come back," he tells Soobin. "He always does, so don't worry."

Soobin, for the first time in a long while, raises his voice in anger. "Kai, we don't know whether he's knocked out from the Mage, let alone willing to come back to us."

"Yeonjun knows this city well," Kai says, softly. "And now that his magic is stronger, he'll be able to defend himself."

Soobin stomps, scaring one of the cats near his feet. "Oh? Like Beomgyu was able to defend himself?"

Kai shakes his head and glares at the concrete. The cats becoming unnerved by Soobin's shouting, some of them running deep into the alley, grates against his nerves. "Beomgyu wasn't prepared. Plus... he's not exactly the most level headed when snuck up on."

"I made a deal with Beomgyu and Taehyun," says Soobin. "They'll search the western half of Seoul while we'll head the other way. C'mon, we have to hurry. This is Yeonjun we're talking about. If we lose him...."

Soobin doesn't have to finish his sentence for Huening Kai to gather the full scope of things. All of the members are essential, and losing one would mean ruin for them all. Yeonjun in particular has always been his reliable older brother. Huening isn't called the little Yeonjun for nothing—he's always looked up to Yeonjun for being a hard worker and infusing coolness into everything he does.

Even now, Huening Kai would like to think that Yeonjun is being cool for setting off on his own. But deep down, he knows he's living in the past. Right now, they need to stick together more than ever.

A warrior means to protect. A warrior means to be in the front lines, protecting the others in the team.

The image of Yeonjun being taken away from him is too much for Huening Kai to handle. It shatters the temporary joy he got from feeding the cats.

He raises a hand, and his anger sparks a bright yellow sword. He swings it into the wall, and a million sparks electrify the space around Kai. The heat blasts against his skin, and the cats remain unaware of the mana energy which emanates gold after the attack.

But soon after, the anger against the Mage melts into surprise at himself—his own abilities and strength. Soobin mirrors a similar expression, one that suggests he could be looking at a different person.

Soobin loses the bitter expression. He begins to laugh. When he finally calms down, Huening is surprised at the emotion wetting Soobin's eyes. "Who knew that little Huening would grow up so fast? I can't believe you've become a warrior who could summon a giant sword."

Huening smiles, feeling the familiarity of their bond. "You're not so bad too. Your arrows have been getting more powerful and accurate."

Soobin grins. "Much better than my archery skills at MOA Academy sports day, right?"

They both laugh. For a moment, Huening feels as though he could forget about the Black Mage altogether. It's just him and his best friend, taking a day off together. He can't imagine going through the trainee and debut life with anyone else. When they became idols, Kai relied on his leader to ground him when the pressures of a public life became too much to handle.