Chapter 19

[Yumi'S P.O.V]

Our journey continues as we approach the second ingredient on our list, ginseng oil. To obtain the previously mentioned material, we must first locate a pink flower known as Panax, which provides the required oil.

Looking at my phone, I read the flower's description once more. It is said that when encountering the Panax flower, we should wear a mask to cover our lips and noses to prevent sniffing its scent.

With just one sniff of this lovely plant, an individual will be high and intoxicated in seconds. Although there is no reason to be concerned if one has inhaled the smell, it will take an hour to recover from the aftermath, and to avoid any injuries, it is essential for a companion to keep an eye on the victim.

Seongho then inquired, "So where do we find this oil?" after I read the description aloud for everyone to hear.

We were all in a pickle. We had no idea where to search or which direction to take because we were unfamiliar with the island.

Instead of looking around, we looked for any relevant clues on our cell phones. We were all focused. But suddenly, Joseph overheard him chit chatting next to him.

The voices sounded unnatural, and they were a touch high-pitched to him, as if they had swallowed helium to change the tone of their voices.

He turned around, astonished to see that they were not alone. He noticed two red pairs of rubies glistening among the shrubs nearby.

While he was staring at it intently, the rubies vanished for a few seconds, as if someone had blinked.

This made the youngster realize that the voices he heard and the eyes he saw were those of monsters.

Everyone was still focused on their phones, and it was difficult to find clues. Jaeseong grew irritated that his search was not yielding any results. He exhaled a distressed sigh as he lifted his head.

He then noticed Joseph's horrified expression as the boy fixed his gaze on the woods. This worried the clown. So he asked the boy what was wrong, and without looking back, Joseph pointed to the woods, where his gaze was fixated.

"O-over there," he shakily said.

We shifted our gaze to where the zoologist was pointing. The glowing eyes he had seen had multiplied, and there were now hundreds of pairs hidden around them. Creepily staring back at us.

"W-what are those?" Jiwoo inquired, horrified.

"S-snakes," Joseph whispered.

As they slithered out, these nasty reptiles hissed in unison. We back up in the center of the muddy road as they creep closer and closer, encircling us.

We were trapped and had no idea what to do.

"Is it the bashes?" guessed Jaeseong. He observed the same horns he remembered seeing on his first mission among the snakes.

I focused my attention on the features of the serpent that surrounded us. It had horns, but its shape was smaller; its skin color was brown rather than purple; and its size was smaller than the original bashe snake.

With the use of their phone, they discovered that the snakes in front of them are known as Kérania, which translates to Striped Horned Snakes.

These are only found on the Aspidochelone Islands. Their life span is only ten years, and they eat mainly fruits from trees or water from the waterfall, and they can go a year without food.

If an individual has been found by one, hundreds are informed, and the poor victim is devoured. This allows them to stay full for another 5 years.

While we were all nestled together, our backs to each other, Joseph engaged in conversation with what appeared to be the den's leader.

"We're only here to retrieve an ingredient for a cure," he stammers. "We promise not to hurt you if you do the same to us."

He tried to persuade them, but no matter what promises the zoologist made, it appeared that their leader would not allow us.

The leader let out a loud hiss and displayed its fangs, which were oozing with poison. When he heard its final words, Joseph was in dismay and quickly yelled, “They’re attacking! ”

The snake den moved quickly as they jumped on us all at once. But Seongho was quick enough to chant, "Magic Circle!" and shield all of us from harm outside.

Holding the circle with a hundred beasts hungry for our meat wasn't easy. Their pounds didn't stop, and the circle was becoming too heavy to hold. "Do something quickly! I will do my best to hold the protection; just be quick!" said the knight.

We were under pressure to come up with a solution immediately because the threat was only a few feet away. It was not an easy task. All of the plans we devised were instantly scrapped.

Plan 1: We fly up in the vehicles of whoever has them.

Because of the numerous snakes above us, that was instantly dismissed. We were stranded inside.

Plan 2: We release the circle and assault with our weapons or powers.

But we have too many opponents to deal with. That would result in our horrible deaths in a matter of seconds.

Plan 3: We could attempt an assault from inside the circle and then make a break for it once there were only a handful of them left.

The good news was that we were able to attack from within. But no matter how often we stabbed them with swords or magic, a new batch of snakes appeared, and we were trapped in a never-ending cycle.

Seongho was doing a fantastic job holding the protection, but if he continues to do this for much longer, he’ll grow tired and will unwillingly let go.

As a result, I began to panic. We were running out of ideas, and I had none left. In a circumstance like this, being pushed to use my brain under peer pressure wasn't helping me at all.

The anxiety began to take over, and I began to feel suffocated. It was not the time to add more issues to an already complex situation; it would only make things worse and possibly lead to our deaths.

I attempted to keep my stress to myself, but Jiwoo overheard me. My breathing became heavier, and he became aware of my distressed expressions.

He placed his hand on my shoulder and gave me a concerned look.

"I'll be fine," I murmured softly.

Jeongmin came up with our fourth idea after searching for a description of what the Panax flower looked like, so he could check for its scent in his surroundings for them to follow.

His strategy was to find the trail of the Panax scent and utilize Seongho's protection power as a shield while they bailed out with their vehicles.

And so the strategy began: we all helped eliminate the snakes in all directions in order to at least create holes in which Jeongmin and I could detect a honey-like aroma of the flowers.

Once we found which direction it was headed, half of us rode in Jaeseong's vehicle and the other half in Jiho's.

Moving the magical circle was feasible, but it required a lot of energy. It was characterized as being as weighty as carrying a carriage.

But the knight was dead set on getting us out of this horrible pit. He was exhausted, but after experiencing such a horrific death, he didn't want us or himself to go through it again.

"On a count to three!" Seongho yelled as he began to count down.

My heart was racing, and I was quite nervous.

"1…"

We were worried that we wouldn't make it.

"2…"

But I don't want to die right now.

"3!"

Our ride was moving at breakneck speed. Seongho realized that his job with the protection power was not going to be easy. His nose crunched, sweat poured down his face, and his breathing became agitated.

As we moved, our familiars (Art, Moon, Oreo, Z, and Spy) protected us and prepared to pounce on the snakes if the strategy failed.

Those who had their hands free aided in the assault. This snake den was not losing population and appeared to be growing much more than previously.

Yuto looked behind him and immediately regretted it. It felt like being chased by a swarm of zombies. It was a terrifying sight to see these snakes ravenous for our blood and flesh.

Regardless, he spun around and began attacking from behind. Despite his fear, Jiho did the same thing as the samurai. The desire to live was their incentive.

Soon enough, we reached the end of a cliff, surrounded by hundreds of Panax. It was an impeccable sight in front, but a horror film in the back.

Despite reaching our destination, we were still being chased by these famished monsters.

"We can't just jump down; it's too dangerous!" Yuto exclaimed, worried.

"We don't have a choice!" Joseph screamed back in distress.

Looking back at the snakes, it was clear that they were closing in swiftly.

Jeongmin grumbled under his breath as he dismounted the vehicle and hurried closer to the forest's entrance.

"Jeongmin! Do you have a death wish?" Jiwoo shouted in fear of having his fellow member get wounded.

Yet the boy didn't listen.

He could feel his breath trembling and his heart racing in panic as his attention was drawn to the snakes just meters away.

“You can do this," he whispered to himself. "Just imagine a wall to protect us. Jeongmin, imagine.”

He felt his power grow within him as his eye color gradually altered to a rainbow.

He imagined a massive wall, and once he had the image vividly in his mind, his eyes shot open, and he stomped his feet heavily.

A wall structure arose from the earth. The Imaginator drew his open hand up, causing the wall to rise even higher until it reached a safe height.

We were astounded to see his creation come to life. It was something out of the norm, and it was thrilling.

"Woah, that was amazing," Jiho exclaimed breathlessly.

"Good job, Jeongmin; hopefully this will keep the snakes at bay for a few minutes," Jaeseong said, relieved.

Jeongmin took a deep breath and huffed with ease after what he had done. He looked up in adoration, and gazing at his creation made him proud.

It wasn't just because he was able to save everyone; it was also because, despite his dread, he was able to face his fear, which resulted in something spectacular.

We were able to relax a little from the monsters as we focused our full attention on completing our task, thanks to him.

[AUTHOR'S P.O.V]

The Holi flower was the next ingredient Heric's crew needed to obtain. This flower they were looking for, according to the dictionary on their phone, was not like any other flower.

Its petals were one enormous circle facing flat, with the texture of a cracker that you could easily split in half with pressure.

How it earned its name: When it was originally discovered, the founders thought its round shape and color resembled a halo. As a result, it was given the name Halo Flower at first.

However, as scientists probed deeper into their investigation, they discovered it to be quite effective in the treatment of illness. Because of one single flower, they were able to create numerous different remedies.

It was therefore nicknamed the miracle flower, but because such a flower has such healing ability, it has been revered as a holy artifact.

As a result, it is officially known as the Holi flower.

They flew out of the island, following the map that indicated where it was supposed to be found. The giveaway was that the flower does not grow on soil but rather on rocks. It is a rare type, found exclusively near Aspidochelone Island.

Unfortunately, it doesn't say anything else but that and its history. This put Heric's team into another bind.

Seungjae let out a sigh. "How are we supposed to find the Holi flower if we don't know where it is?" He questioned, vexed.

"It said it grows on rock rather than soil, which could be a clue," Milton said.

"Ugh, another puzzle; I'm terrible at solving problems like this in games," Sujin grumbled.

He was aware that puzzles were frequently handed out on missions. Given that he was playing a game, he anticipated that there would be puzzles of different levels of complexity.

But due to his habit, whenever he encounters a challenging puzzle, he relies on the other members to solve it.

"I'm with you on that," Yejoon said as he lay down to rest.

"Oh my, look at these lazy Hyung's," nagged Seungjae.

This irritated the musician. "Then do you have the answer to the puzzle then?" he inquired.

"He obviously doesn't," Milton remarked.

"Hey, I do!" argued Seungjae.

"Oh yeah, then what?"

The unexpected question caught Seungjae off guard. He knew he had to respond, or else he'd be teased for the rest of the adventure.

He frantically looked around for any hints but couldn't locate any. Until he locked eyes with the stony mountain.

"The mountain!" he exclaimed. "I mean, it's made of rocks. Maybe we'll be able to discover it over there."

The rest of the team was impressed; the mountains were a great guess, and given the intricacies of the Holi flower habitat, they all agreed it was worth a shot.

They landed minutes later at a nearby rocky mountain, where Jun immediately discovered a flower he hadn't seen before, sprinting up to it, gently picking it out, and revealing it to the others.

"Does this look like the Holi flower?" he inquired, clutching a halo-like plant.

Heric nodded in surprise. "Yep. That's the one," he confirmed. He wasn't expecting them to find the blossom so quickly.

"That's one strange flower," Minjoon observed as he examined it.

As they placed it in the basket, the team began plucking every Holi flower they spotted, and they had to be quite cautious with it.

The flower is like a biscuit; if you hold it by the petals, it won't shatter, but if you throw it into the basket, it will.

In order to avoid this, it is best to regard it as a fragile object and gently place it inside. It was lightweight but effortlessly breakable if not handled with care.

These flowers were unfamiliar to the boys, yet they were enthralled by them.

Although most of them were scared of the symptoms it might trigger if consumed, Yejoon couldn't help but be intrigued.

He inhaled the smell with a sniff. It had a medicinal odor.

Heric became terrified when he saw what the musician had done. "Don't smell that!" he exclaimed, despite the fact that it was too late to warn him.

Yejoon was taken aback by Heric's warning and stared back at him, stunned.

"W-what? Why?" he questioned as he rose up, but as he did, he became dizzy, his eyesight blurred, and everything around him began to spin in place.

"I don't feel so…" Before completing his sentence, the musician took a step back to regain his posture, but stumbled and plunged off the cliff.

Minjoon cried as he acted rapidly. "Hyung!" As he fell, he grasped the boy's arm.

Sujin, who was standing next to the chef, reached for his friend's ankle but missed his chance.

To everyone's horror, they immediately hurried to the cliff's edge to check on the two, but they couldn't find them anywhere.

Even Digger, Minjoon's familiar, and Muse, Yejoon’s familiar, were looking for them, whimpering worriedly.

The boys speculated that they had died as a result of the long fall, but Heric objected. If they had died as a result of that, the two would have reincarnated behind them already.

They were near the mountain's summit, so there was a chance Yejoon and Minjoon were still falling or had landed somewhere in the rocky mountain in need of medical attention.

"Hey guys!" yelled a voice from behind them, and everyone turned around hurriedly. They noticed Minjoon carrying Yejoon, who was sleeping, on top of Prico's back.

They had assumed the two had died as a result of the fall, but it appears that the Pegasus had rescued them, and seeing them with no wounds or broken bones made them sigh in relief.

They surrounded the chef as he jumped off Prico while still carrying Yejoon.

"Are you alright? Are you in any pain?" Sujin inquired, scanning his body from front to back, top to bottom.

"I'm fine, bro," Minjoon said. "Thanks to Prico, we're both fine!"

Sujin and Seungjae both screamed out in relief as they approached the Pegasus and hugged him tightly.

They were grateful for his assistance in saving their buddies.

The other members began looking for cures for the sleeping musician on their phones. But there was no medicine to help him wake up.

Once consumed, it will replenish the individual's energy and even heal any wounds they may have. BUT! If they take a sniff, the individual will fall asleep. Fret not; they'll wake up in a few hours.