Chapter 28

Yumi was making hot chocolate for the boys when she got a message from Jaeseong. She went over the message and read it.

JAESEONG: 'Hey, the kitchen they have is massive! I just wanted to inform you.'

YUMI: 'Tempting, but I'll pass.'

He suddenly provided a picture of the kitchen, which was indeed enormous. It was most likely one of the largest kitchens she'd ever seen in her life.

He then shared a second photo of the raw ingredients on the island counter. There were plenty of them that would be ideal for preparing some of her favorite Japanese meals.

Yumi sighed. Thinly sliced meat, chunks of meat, chicken meats, eggs, fruits, vegetables, and all the seasonings. Her stomach churned just thinking about it.

YUMI: 'Can we even cook in the palace? Won't the King and Queen get upset? '

JAESEONG: 'No, the King gave us permission to use it anytime we're hungry. Tell the youngsters to come along with you! Yejoon and I can't finish anything on our own.'

Accepting their tempting invitation, the girl turned to the boys and proceeded towards them with the tray of hot chocolate.

She then placed the cups on the living room table and served them. Receiving the hot beverage and being offered refreshments to warm them up relieved them in this weather.

"Jaeseong sent a message and said that we can make some food to eat in the castle." She informed them.

"We can just cook here; what's the difference?" Seungjae wondered.

"First of all, it's the palace we're talking about. And second, I don't have that many ingredients in my fridge. We can cook some Korean meals with all the ingredients they have in the palace!" She clarified.

"How long has it been since we last ate?" Sujin inquired as Milton looked through his phone.

"About 5 hours ago," he said.

"Oh! Then let's go eat!"

"How do we get to the palace? It's blizzarding outside, and we might die from hypothermia," Jiho worriedly asked.

There was a chance that this would happen. Angela informed them that the current temperature in Houndlet Kingdom was negative 35, which was even colder than the coldest temperature from where they live.

"We can just make a car," Jun proposed.

"That's not a good idea, considering cars don't exist here," Joseph said.

"A carriage?" suggested Yuto.

"Who will take the wheel?" Minjoon questioned. Smoke, stripes, and Ark all spoke out and offered to drive the carriage.

While Jiho was making armor for their familiars, Jeongmin and Yumi worked together for a few hours to construct a carriage that could seat 15 passengers.

"It's finished! Everyone hop in!" Yumi exclaimed excitedly as the boys hurried out of the cottage and into the carriage, attempting to avoid the snowflakes falling on their skin.

"Oh damn, this is pretty cozy!" Milton exclaimed as he stepped in.

"Yumi Noona designed the interior; isn't it pretty cool?" Jeongmin exclaimed happily.

"What can we expect? She's our graphic designer, after all!" Seungjae said as he smiled and giddily nudged her shoulder.

Before heading off, Yumi began counting the members to check whether anyone had been left behind or not. And once they were complete, she opened a small window that led out to the driver's seat.

"Stripes, Smoke, Ark, you may begin! Thank you!" she said, closing the window after as the familiars began going towards the palace.

When they arrived, Mr. Smith politely directed them to the kitchen, where Yejoon and Jaeseong were waiting.

They strolled out into the backyard, and just ahead was a small cottage house with a kitchen.

This piqued their interest because they had never seen a kitchen with its own space outside in the backyard before.

The warmth of the cottage embraced their chilled bodies the instant they stepped inside. It was almost magical, and it made them very happy to know they could cook freely without shivering every second.

"Oh, hey! You guys made it!" Yejoon exclaimed enthusiastically.

Inside, they were greeted not only by warmth but also by a little lounge area directly beside the kitchen. It was similar to the cabin they were staying in, only there were no bedrooms for them to sleep in.

"Holy, it's warm here!" Jun exclaimed, relieved.

"This place has vents that purify the cold air in order to make it warm for winter," Jaeseong mentioned.

They noticed the variety of ingredients on the counter, as if it were beckoning them to begin cooking and use them for their meals.

Seongho inquired, "What will you guys make?"

Yejoon shrugged. "I haven't thought of that yet."

"Well, I have," Yumi said. "And during the winter season, I would always go for something warm, like miso soup."

On a cold day like today, the thought of eating something warm and healthy for lunch sounded heavenly.

"Let's pair it with some yakitori and kimbap!" Minjoon suggested.

The sound of those side dishes with the miso soup sounded just amazing; it was like the ultimate winter combination.

The aroma of these delicacies being prepared smelled so amazing that the boys were eager to eat. However, in the midst of their preparation, Heric came running inside the kitchen in a hurry.

He huffed and puffed in exertion, and his sudden worn-out, aghast gaze worried them all.

"Heric! Are you alright?" Yumi inquired, concerned.

"What happened? Why do you look so frantic?" Milton inquired.

"The..." He attempted to respond between breaths, "The village is under attack!"

Everyone came to a halt as they all stared at him, stunned. Angela then appeared inside with a crowd of children, which astonished them even more.

"Boys, Yumi, please help us with the monster while some of you take care of the kids."

"What is attacking us?" Yumi asked in a panic tone.

"A Winter Dragon—" The unexpected roar of the dragon could be heard from afar, just as Angela told them what they were up against. Although it was a long distance away, it was quite loud.

"Shit, we have to act now!" she exclaimed in a panic.

And so, Yuto, Minjoon, Seungjae, Sujin, and Yumi were assigned to look after the children while the rest of the team went into war.

They dashed out to the battlefield, while those who stayed behind took care of the children, who were filled with fright.

"Will everything be okay, sir?" one of the children inquired as she tugged on Seungjae's shirt. The Songist kneeled, smiling reassuringly and gently cupping the child's cheek.

"Everything will be fine. We are all here to protect you."

"I'm scared. I don't want to die yet," one of the kids said, and Yuto kneeled down in front of him, a warm grin on his face.

"You won't die. Nobody is going to die. The knights and hunters will do their best to defeat the monster." He comforted them.

They were unsure whether their huntsmen would be able to defeat the dragon. They were terrified because it was their first encounter with the town being attacked or even being against a dragon.

Even though they were all fearful of what was going to happen, they had to remain calm and brave in order not to scare the children any further.

Yumi said with a smile, "Here. Why don't you kids eat something?" as she set a couple of bowls of miso soup on the counter for them to consume.

Yuto, Seungjae, Minjoon, and Sujin assisted the children in sitting on the stool and conversing with them in an attempt to divert their attention away from the disaster.

When the boys and Angela arrived at the scene of the attack, they were astounded by what they saw.

Before their own eyes was a 20-meter-tall white dragon with blue crystal orbs. They've never witnessed anything like it!

"Cool," Jeongmin said, mesmerized by the enemy's appearance.

Despite its beauty, it was dangerous. The dragon ferociously swung its tail with a malicious intent to kill them.

"Watch out!" Heric exclaimed as the boys successfully avoided the dragon's onslaught.

"Oh my God, take that back. That's not cool at all!" shouted the Imaginator in horror after a near-death experience.

"How do we defeat that hell of a beast?" shouted Yejoon, terrified.

In a panic, Milton guessed, "Fire?"

"We tried that; it had no effect," one of the knights explained.

"But we're evacuating the citizens to a safe place; their lives are more important," another knight replied.

This is when Seongho recommended splitting their team up. Half of them will assist in the evacuation of the citizens, while the other half will work alongside the other hunters and knights to eliminate the menace.

They were all on board with his plan. To save the citizens, Seongho, Joseph, Jeongmin, Milton, and Angela joined one of the knights. While Jaeseong, Jun, Jiwoo, Yejoon, Jiho, and Heric remained to aid in the dragon's demise,

However, the hunters who stayed to kill their enemy were placed in a bind. They had no idea what attack they should use.

"We have to figure out this monster's weakness in order to hunt it down!" screamed Heric.

It was an excellent plan at the time. As a result, they tried attacking with what they assumed would be the monster's vulnerability: fire.

Jiwoo utilized his video game power to select characters that could use fire to assist him.

"Bowso, use fire to attack!" he yelled as he drew his dragon, Bowso, out, and the character quickly exhaled fire from his mouth.

Jun came to help him with his fire element while utilizing his wind element to help attack from above, but despite their effort, the dragon's thick skin nullified its attack.

"Shoot! When they said fire didn't work, it really didn't work at all!" Jun yelled, distressed.

Just then, the dragon tried to claw the Ele-nder down, but he managed to avoid it, teleporting back to his team members on the ground.

As everyone tried thinking of another attack to utilize, Yejoon had already started with his plan.

"Everyone, move!" he shouted as they all gazed up at the boy on the roof of a building next to the monster.

Before the members could question him, he successfully jumped on the dragon's neck, frightening the other members.

However, the dragon sensed the musician climbing up on his back, causing the monster to go berserk.

"Yejoon, be careful!" Jaeseong screamed as the musician struggled to climb up the dragon's back. He didn't give up, and with his might, he was able to reach his head.

He puffed anxiously as he ducked down, clutching the dragon's thorns tightly as he charged up his power.

As the dragon roared furiously, Yejoon took out his handkerchief and murmured, "Engineer," before leaping from the dragon's head, causing everyone in the area to scream in horror.

He then immediately turned around, pointed his artillery gun, and fired, while the dragon ejected icy flames from his mouth.

Yejoon's blast successfully struck the dragon, causing it to tumble to the ground before the beast froze him completely.

"Yejoon hyung!" Jiho screamed in terror as he utilized his vehicle to fly up and catch the boy before safely driving back to the ground.

He transported Yejoon to a safe location where the youngster could relax.

"That was dangerous! You could've gotten yourself killed!" Jaeseong exclaimed, concerned.

"I'm sorry, I thought it was a good plan," he said, his leg tingling and frozen in anguish.

Although Yejoon was able to hit the dragon, it still managed to freeze his right leg. Fortunately, he was clever enough to dodge the assault and prevent critical damage.

"Is the dragon dead?" Jun inquired, hoping for an immediate victory. But unfortunately, it picked itself up and got back on its feet. It was still alive.

"Oh no," Heric dreaded as the dragon roared in anger as it froze the people beside it with its chilly breath.

It was about to trample on the frozen knights. The boys couldn't just sit by and watch them perish a painful death.

Jaeseong rapidly used his illusion and string power to save them, swinging over just in time to take hold of the knights.

Jun then used his fire element to thaw the frozen knights and bring them back to life. Although the job was done, they were still unconscious and required medical attention.

Jiwoo shielded Jun while he and Heric transported the unconscious knights to the evacuation center for Angela to take care of.

"Pikechi, Pichi! Use Lightning!" yelled the gamer as he called both Pakémin, and they swiftly obeyed, electrocuting the monster.

Even though they managed to hit the dragon, the damage was only 1%, and the dragon was still standing strong.

When the beast noticed the man, he leapt at him. Jiwoo attempted to flee, but the momentum of the jump was too powerful, sending the gamer flying and landing roughly on the ground.

Pikechi, Pichi, and Z dashed to their master, whimpering worriedly as Jiwoo grunted deeply in pain. He attempted to stand up, but a wave of excruciating pain hit his abdomen.

He looked down and noticed a sharp piece of wood penetrating his stomach and blood on his hand. Jeongmin happened to be passing by where the gamer was at the time.

His eyes widened in horror as he met his injured friend's gaze. "Jiwoo-ah!" he exclaimed as he sprinted towards him.

"Jiwoo, are you?" Jeongmin panicked as he observed the sharp wood penetrating his abdomen.

"No," he responded softly. “No, no, no. What should I do? What should I do?" In a hurry, he tried to pull Jiwoo out, but it only made the gamer groan in pain.

The Imaginator flinched in surprise when he heard him grunt as he gasped shakily. "Sorry," he kept apologizing, his mind blank as his hand roamed above his body, trying to figure out how he could help remove his buddy out of his despair.

"Heal him, Master!" shouted Moon.

"How?" cried Jeongmin, who was on the edge of tears.

"You're an Imaginator; you're capable of healing him, master!" Moon said.

Jiwoo extended his bloodied hands to him, faintly shaking. "P-pull me before you heal," he mumbled.

The child looked down at his hands, then up with teary eyes, before grabbing both of his hands and breathing in as he bravely pulled Jiwoo out of the sharp wood, causing the gamer to grunt in agony.

He swiftly placed his hand on the wound and closed his eyes after successfully extracting him. He initially relaxed himself as his power grew within him.

"Heal." A ball of light appeared beneath his hand, successfully healing Jiwoo. He sighs in relief as he sees that the wound has healed completely.

"Thanks," Jiwoo remarked. "That hurt like hell," he chuckled, making Jeongmin giggle in relief as he wiped the tears from his cheeks.

"Jiwoo, are you okay?" Heric inquired, concerned, as he ran up to them.

"Yeah, Jeongmin saved me just in time."

"Great, because Jiho has a plan and we need your help," he replied.

[Yumi’s P.O.V]

It's been almost an hour since the attack began. Yuto, Sujin, and Seungjae were playing in the backyard after the kids had finished their hearty lunch.

Now that I was out of the children's sight, I couldn't stop thinking about the boys as I was wiping the plates dry. Minjoon was washing the dishes next to me when he noticed my hands had stopped moving.

He knew I was concerned about them, and so was he. But, despite his concern for them, he realized that someone had to be sane in the midst of all of this.

"Relax, noona; they'll be fine." He reassured me with a soft nudge on my shoulder.

"How are you so sure? After all those screams from the dragon, we can't be certain that everything will be okay."

Plus, it was a winter dragon they were up against. I looked up any information I could find about that creature, and it stands 20 meters tall.

"Even though we are immortal, we'll still have to experience pain and death," I said.

"I know you're worried, Noona, but we have to take care of the kids, as Angela said."

"I know," I groaned, "but—" my sentence cut short when we heard the children shriek in terror from outside.

We hurried out, dropping everything we had. "Is everything okay?" I asked, but as soon as I did, a high-pitched growl could be heard from the trees ahead of us.

Yuto pushed open the door. "Children, get inside and hide," he said, and they did as they hid in the kitchen in fright.

Sujin summoned his musical sword and directed towards the forest in front as he asked, "W-who's there?" His voice shook nervously.

Three 8-foot-tall Hyenas emerged.

They snarled menacingly, their glowing orbs glaring at us as their jaws foamed; they were hungry for our flesh.

We instantly pulled out our weapons, pointing towards them. Not succumbing to their intimidating appearance.

The sudden visit of these monsters terrified us all, especially the children. Although, how the heck did these monsters enter the palace when the forest in front of us is still on royal property?

Was it the work of someone from the royal palace? Did John Mikaile escape from prison? But that's not possible because the prison he was brought to was on an island far away from Houndlet Kingdom.

Even if he had escaped, the King and Queen should have been reported by it minutes later, and it will take another week for him to arrive here.

So, who exactly was doing this?