ššŗš§ Chapter 3 ā The Monster in the Dark
The creature's roar echoed across the empty school yard.
Its red eyes glowed like burning embers as it charged forward.
BOOM!
The ground cracked under its heavy steps.
Jae-Min's body tensed instantly.
His wolf instincts screamed inside his mind.
Danger.
Behind him, Ara calmly brushed her long hair behind her ear.
"You brought me to a fight on our first meeting," she said softly.
"Very bold."
Jae-Min didn't look at her.
"If you're scared, leave."
Ara smiled.
"Scared?"
Her crimson eyes glowed faintly.
"I've lived for more than a century, Kang Jae-Min."
"A monster like this doesn't scare me."
The creature suddenly leaped toward them.
Its claws sliced through the air.
Jae-Min moved instantly.
WHOOSH!
He jumped backward with incredible speed.
His eyes flashed gold.
His nails sharpened slightly.
Not a full transformation.
But the wolf inside him was waking up.
The monster swung its arm again.
Before it could strikeā
CRACK!
Ara vanished.
For a split second she disappeared like a shadow.
Thenā
BAM!
She appeared behind the creature and kicked it hard in the back.
The monster crashed into the school wall.
Dust filled the air.
Jae-Min blinked.
"Fastā¦"
Ara landed lightly on the ground.
"Of course."
"I'm a vampire."
The monster roared again and stood up.
But this timeā¦
It looked angrier.
Jae-Min clenched his fists.
"This thing isn't normal," he said.
Ara nodded.
"It smells wrong."
"Like it was createdā¦ not born."
The creature rushed forward again.
This time Jae-Min didn't dodge.
Insteadā
His eyes turned bright gold.
His muscles expanded slightly.
His teeth sharpened.
Half-wolf form.
He caught the monster's arm.
CRACK!
The creature howled in pain.
Ara raised an eyebrow.
"Wellā¦ that's impressive."
Jae-Min threw the monster across the yard.
It crashed into a tree.
But suddenlyā
The monster's body began to shake.
Dark energy surrounded it.
And thenā¦
It exploded into black smoke.
Silence filled the yard.
Ara looked confused.
"Itā¦ disappeared?"
Jae-Min slowly returned to his human form.
"Someone summoned it."
Ara crossed her arms.
"Meaning someone is hunting supernatural students."
Just thenā
A voice spoke from behind them.
"Well wellā¦"
"That was interesting."
Both of them turned quickly.
Standing near the school gate was a boy with messy brown hair.
Lee Min-Joon.
He was holding a bag of snacks like he had just come from a convenience store.
He stared at them calmly.
Jae-Min's eyes narrowed.
"How long have you been standing there?"
Min-Joon smiled.
"Long enough to see the wolf claws and vampire speed."
Ara sighed.
"Great."
"We've been exposed."
But Min-Joon didn't look scared.
Insteadā¦
His eyes suddenly glowed orange.
A small flame appeared in his hand.
Jae-Min froze.
Ara blinked.
Min-Joon scratched the back of his head.
"Guess we're all hiding secrets, huh?"
The flame in his palm burned brighter.
"My name is Lee Min-Joon."
"And I thinkā¦"
He pointed toward the place where the monster vanished.
"Something bad is happening in this city."
He smiled slightly.
"And I want in."
Jae-Min stared at him.
Ara looked amused.
A werewolf.
A vampire.
And nowā¦
A boy who could control fire.
The night in Seoul suddenly felt much more dangerous.
But far away across the cityā¦
Inside a dark abandoned buildingā¦
A mysterious man watched everything through a magical mirror.
Three teenagers appeared in the reflection.
The man smiled slowly.
"Three of the prophecy children have awakenedā¦"
His eyes glowed dark purple.
"But two more remain."
The mirror showed two other students.
A quiet girl studying in a library.
And a silver-haired boy standing on a rooftop under the moon.
The man whispered softly.
"Soonā¦"
"All five will gather."
"And when they doā¦"
"Seoul will drown in darkness."
TO BE CONTINUE š„š„š„š„