3

The next few days hadn't been too bad. The Saja Boys had explored most of Seoul, and they'd been well adjusting to modern Korea.

Although they've been sleeping in alleyways, life could've been worse. After all, they had survived centuries in the demon realm, so nothing could top the suffering they'd felt in the pits of Gwi ma's ruling.

The sunshine peeked through a gap in the alleyway, which Jinu woke up. He was always a somewhat light sleeper, preferring to stay awake rather than dream about the memories.

Jinu got up and counted the members out of habit: one, two, three, and he counted himself, four. Wait, four? That's not good.

Baby was the missing member, which didn't surprise him. It was in his blood to run away or something. He'd probably be around here, hopefully.

"Baby?" He called out as he walked through the alleyways, looking in each crack and crevice. Jinu didn't want to admit it, but he couldn't stand it when he wasn't able to find his members in an arm's reach.

Jinu walked faster as his brain instantly started going into all the bad possibilities of where Baby could be. To him, Baby was just a baby. He felt almost motherly to him, in a way.

After another turn, he finally found him.

"Oh, thank goodness," He ran down the alleyway where Baby was sitting, playing with paper boats in a puddle.

Playing with paper boats at dawn? That's quite childish. Jinu didn't know any of the members' full history before making deals with Gwi ma, but he had known that Baby was the youngest age when making his deal.

Baby looked up and jumped when he saw Jinu. "You." He drowned the paper boat he was holding in the water. Jinu almost frowned, feeling bad for interrupting something he found fun in, even if it was childish.

Nonetheless, it was still his responsibility to take care of his members, and make sure they didn't wander off.

"It's not safe to roam the streets alone," Jinu held out a hand and helped the reluctant Baby up. "We don't want another member to get lost." He smirks.

Placing a hand on Baby's lower back, the two walk back to where the members are now awake. It seemed like they were waiting to start searching for them if they hadn't returned.

"Oh good, you're here." Romance said, heaving a sigh of relief. Quite dramatic, Jinu had to say. The leader knew his way around the streets and prided himself on it.

"We've taken a vote," Abby announced, interrupting Jinu and his thoughts. Romance and Mystery standing beside Abby.

"Vote? What is it?" Jinu hoped it wasn't something stupid like choosing which stupid park to terrorise next.

Romance sighed, "We voted to reunite with Huntrix."

Jinu's heart almost stopped. He wanted to meet them, to hold Rumi again, but he didn't actually expect to do it so soon.

"Uh, y-you guys sure?" They nodded. Jinu gulped, only now imagining all the ways it could go wrong.

Jinu rubbed the back of his neck with his hand, "Alright... I guess I'm ready. I know the way to their apartment."

"No."

They all turn to Baby.

"What do you mean 'no'?" Jinu asked. Baby sounded against the vote,  but it was more that he was angry that they decided on that.

"What I mean by 'no', is that I'm not letting you guys go near Huntrix ever again." He crossed his arms and spoke firmly. Jinu almost laughed, but he was curious. Maybe now would be the perfect time to break through why he hated them so much.

"And why is that?" Romance spoke up this time, mirroring his crossed arms with a small smirk.

"Because," Baby smiled sarcastically, "They slaughtered you, in front of my eyes."

The group's mood dimmed almost instantly. Right, Baby was the only one who survived, which meant he saw all of the boys die before resurrecting them with the help of spirits.

The four make eye contact and Abby steps forward.

He holds Baby's hands in his, "We understand that you don't want us to get hurt again, but it's gonna be different this time. Trust us."

Baby pulls his hand away, angered that he even dared to disagree. "And what if you're wrong, like the way you were wrong about defeating Huntrix? What if I have to watch you die, again?"

"Then we'll murder them with our human hands." Mystery whispers behind him, giving him a spook.

Baby yelps, which is quite rare for the nonchalant individual. Abby stifles a laugh and Jinu elbows him, reminding him to take this seriously.

Baby straightens up,"I-if you say so," he stammers, trying to save his image. "Then, I guess it's fine. But you guys better not die!" Of course he had to add his flair of being mean, he couldn't let the members know he wanted them alive.

"That's our maknae!" The boys surround him and form a big group hug. Baby smiled, finding his elders even more childish than he was. It was hard to remain stoic in front of them, but that's the best way he knew how to love.

"Well, what are we waiting for? Let's go meet Huntrix!" Abby beamed, and the others followed in pursuit.

Jinu grabbed Abby's shoulder before he could skedaddle away. "Not so fast, I'll lead the way. Don't get distracted on the way. Especially you, Baby." Jinu points an accusing finger.

Baby holds his hands up and chuckles, "Alright, alright." He said in defeat. Baby climbed onto Romance's back and the Saja Boys set out to HUNTR/X's penthouse, excited and nervous to what the future holds. Maybe they would set them on fire, maybe they'd greet them with open arms. You'd never know.

Author's note: Sorry about the shorter chapter today, I just couldn't extend it more than needed 💔 Thank you so much for all the support I've had so far, I'm so happy people are reading my book!!Drop any suggestions you have in the comments, I wanna expand my story to make it more enjoyable for my audience :)Thanks for reading another chapter! 💗