Untitled

Byung, who was sleeping more than he should due to his illness, woke up soon from his slumber but he was sweating profusely.

He was visibly shaken but he couldn't recall the dream he had. No, this was a nightmare.

This did not deter him, however, as he was still half asleep and simply shifted his gear to go for a second round. Kwan would barge in with a tray of food, effectively making this impossible.

"Huh? You didn't go to work?" Asked a curious Byung.

"Of course not, I can't leave you sick and alone," Kwan responded just as fast but just for a moment, the room became silent.

"Aww, I knew you loved me," Byung said, not only breaking the silence but mocking Kwan.

"W-Whatever man. Eat up." Kwan replied, dropping the tray of food and walking towards the door but before he could exit, Byung would ask him.

"What about Cho?" in which Kwan chuckled and said.

"You should have seen him earlier, he couldn't wait to get out of the house." and both would have a good laugh at the expense of Cho.

They both knew about Cho's phobia to germs that did not come from his creation, this was enough for Byung to forget about the uneasy feelings he had mere seconds ago with the door shutting behind Kwan.

"It has been a while I checked my Istagram." Byung would mutter as his hand reached for his phone and logged in. He could barely keep them open but he fought through this with sheer will.

"Hooo?" He muttered, clearly surprised upon logging in.

He had a sudden influx of followers, a drastic increase from the 3 he had on the previous day and this would bring about a huge smile from him.

"2 new messages!?" He exclaimed, jumping up in shock. For a moment, he could feel his body reinvigorated with energy one could say was bestowed by the gods but just as he opened the messages, his phone would switch off. The battery was dead and Byung realized he did not plug it in earlier.

"Why can't anything just go right!?" Byung would mumble as he dropped his phone on the table beside his bed and got prepared to consume the meal before him.

Kwan moved to the kitchen to boil water so he could prepare tea for Byung but he soon got a call from an unknown number. He had just gotten a new phone after his last one was thrashed by Alice and in doing so, lost most of his contacts as he had failed to back them up. But it did not matter, he had the important ones stored up in his head. But if he picked and asked who it was, it would prolong the conversation unnecessarily. Contemplating the pros and cons of doing so, he would conclude.

"Screw it." He muttered, picking up his phone.

"Hello, Kwan on the line." but he got no reply, all he could hear was an incoherent mumble, taking a look at his phone to check if this was some sort of automated call but it did not look like one, still no word that made sense was said from the other side of the phone. Kwan did not bother speaking anymore and just hung up.

"That was weird." He thought as he continued what he had previously planned.

Two distinctive bang would be heard at the front door, and an irritated Kwan would scream at the door in frustration.

"Who is that!?" but the same incoherent mumble he had heard on the phone a few seconds ago was heard once more but now, it was at his front door.

Grabbing a knife, he moved slowly to the door, doing well to stealth his footsteps. He knew it might just be a prank but it was better to be safe than sorry.

Hiding his knife behind his back as the incoherent voice continued but as he reached for the doorknob, the incoherent mumble would stop immediately. Followed by faint footsteps, whoever the person was, they seemed to be running away.

Rushing, he would open the door in a bid to catch a glimpse of whoever was behind the door but unfortunately, all that met his eyes were muddy footprints leading away from his house.

"Kids and pranks these days…." Kwan said, irritated but deep down, he had his doubts because whoever that was, had his number.

Slamming the door shut and making sure it was well secured by locking it from within with extra bolts.

"Am I being paranoid?" He thought as he waited for the water to boil.

Ki-Tae had left the Guild building for the first time in a long time, and with Woojin's deteriorating relationship with his supposed comrades, Ki-tae knew for the Guild to function as an entity, trust was the crucial ingredient and without trust, they could not work to their fullest potential.

As the leader, it was his job to bring them together, but he was certain his appearance would draw unnecessary attention and this wouldn't bode well for he wanted to move under the radar. He wore dark shades with a white fedora coupled with a pitch-black suit and black shirt beneath.

Ki-Tae entered a bar that looked to be in shambles to meet an old acquaintance, this was one of his contacts from his family's company in which he now headed.

"Welcome, Mr. Wang." The man greeted him. He was an elderly man of small stature, being smaller than most of the citizens of South Korea, measuring 4'7. He has small amounts of grey hair alongside his ears and the back of his head. The top of his head is bald. He has brown small eyes that are often kept shut, small grey eyebrows, and wrinkle lines around his mouth. He is seen in his dark gray suit which consisted of matching pants. He wears a white dress shirt and a black tie with a pair of black shoes.

"Please, Jae-Kuk, call me Ki-tae." He responded, before taking a seat right beside him around the corner of the bar, the position of this particular table was partially hidden from sight. Making it difficult for anyone to spot them passively.

"Master Ki-tae, I am glad to see you are healthy. Ever since your accident, to think you could still rule with this much authority makes you a greater leader than your father." Jae-Kuk praised him, from the way he spoke it was clear that Jae-Kuk was a man of certain elegance, he oozed the aura of a nobleman mixed with wealth. But no one knew the true identity of Ki-tae nor how he got his terrible injuries. He was a normal man that got into an unfortunate accident that greatly handicapped him, he used a cane to navigate. A power tussle occurred during his father's questionable death but with Jin declining the chance to take over as their family owned most of the shares within the company, with less than 25% shared with the remaining partners. Ki-Tae took over the company after meeting the qualifications and completing high school and the man that kept the company running was Jae-kuk, he acted in the place of the Wang's family head till Ki-tae reached the requirements to take over and shortly after, the accident occurred. Jae-kuk became the right-hand man of Ki-tae and ran the company now in his stead but all the big decisions were brought to Ki-Tae.

"You flatter me. Tell me, why did you request my presence on such short notice?" Ki-Tae asked. He was certain the death of his older brother was not known outside the Guild and the few policemen on the crime scene. The media could not reveal the face of the deceased or they risk the possibility of a massive lawsuit.

"Master Ki-tae, I am here on behalf of your mother. She wishes for you to come home." Jae-kuk would say but instantly, he could feel the demeanor change around Ki-Tae. He was visibly vexed upon Jae-kuk bringing up his mother.

"A-Apologies, Master Ki-Tae. I did not mean to upset you." Jae-kuk said as quick as he could but Ki-tae would wave if off.

"It is fine, it is fine. We may not be on good terms but she is still my mother." He responded with a smile, visible beneath his bandage.

"This seemed more like a phone call conversation. So why am I really here?" Ki-Tae asked in a serious tone, and Jae-kuk would respond by clearing his throat.

"I am sorry but I have grown concerned about your brother." Jae-kuk would say.

Ki-Tae's body language could not hide his surprise at the sudden mention of Jin but would permit Jae-kuk to continue. After all, every man has his own secret.

"Carry on," Ki-Tae instructed, adjusting his seating position to mirror the suspenseful atmosphere.

"Your brother had me make inquires about a certain mythological object. He told me to contact you if I did not hear back from him." The man said but could not continue due to Ki-tae interrupting.

"What are you talking about?" Ki-Tae asked

" This. It was about something called 'The Key Of Depravity'."

Reaching for the inner pocket of his suit, he would retrieve a paper filled with writings and gently place it in the hands of Ki-Tae. But with Jae-kuk unaware of the supernatural world right under his nose, he would write this little research off as a project as Jin told him it was for a book he was writing.

"This is bad, this is really bad!" Ki-Tae thought to himself, looking terrified.