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Chapter 2: Runes and Crowns

Seungmin let out a small sign of relief when he was met with the busy buzzing of the main portal hub of Atlantis. It was a new construction in the ancient underwater city and was thrumming with the magical energy generated by multiple magical portals being opened under its roof. It had been build primarily by magical creatures under the instruction of the two guardians of NCT, Lee Taeyong and Moon Taeil, the leader of the currently strongest group BTS, RM, and one of the three leaders of SEVENTEEN, S.Coups. The whole building reminded one of a huge dome with a dozen large windows nestled under huge arches that dimly shone with runes.

Each time Seungmin looked at the runes that adored the arches, a small smile tugged at his lips. He had spent countless nights working with both his family, Changbin and the few elves in Atlantis to figure out which runes would be beneficial for the safe travel through portals. It had been tricky to figure out such old magical symbols and then teach them to other magical creatures, but it had been made a lot easier by employing the help of an ancient being. That ancient being had been Seungmin's father, the devil himself - or Lucifer as he preferred to be called.

Of course no one knew that the devil himself had been involved in the research of the runes. Everyone had simply been introduced to Mr. Kim Lucifer, a demon and the Kim brothers' father. That introduction had worked a lot smoother than Seungmin had anticipated, but everyone in Atlantis had also slowly gotten used to the Kim brother's true forms. Wonpil with his whipping devil's tail, Byungho with his pitch-black angel wings and Seungmin with his sharp, tar-black claws. Even Woosu and Samuel used their devilish blood to their full advantage now. Woosu's rare magic could take on burning capabilities. It would burn brighter and brighter until it turned into various colors, staining his skin in twilight when it touched him but it never hurt him. Samuel couldn't only perfectly imitate voices, his siren songs could turn horrifying instead of alluring. He could let people freeze in fear or run for what they believe to be their life with a simple change of tone. Both of those abilities were entirely unheard of for the species they outwardly present. So the reaction to the demon, Mr. Kim Lucifer, was rather tame. If the people had shown any distrust towards the Kim patriarch, it had been abandoned as soon as he proposed a series of runes that would support the portal spells and help keep the magic used to maintain it stable. Those rune series were majorly used in the high arches of what people started to call the Portal Dome. It wasn't really creative but explained the building's function well enough.

Seungmin heard Jeongin more than he saw him when the young kitsune joined his group. The group's youngest always made it a point to loudly complain to his boyfriend, Felix, as well as anyone of their group who will listen to him how utterly unfair it was that he had gotten left behind to manage the other end of the portal. Seungmin had the sneaking suspicion he did it more to raise his group's spirits after missions than to truly complain.

With his hand still held captive by the one siren to whose song Seungmin was entirely immune, the demon did not bother to pay attention to where he was being dragged. He hoped it was somewhere more quiet. The portal dome did have the tendency to be noisy with creatures of all kinds arriving in Atlantis. Generally, the once abandoned underwater city had become quite crowed with creatures from all over the world seeking refuse within its borders. The three barrier mages of GOT7 even had to expand the ancient magical dome that kept Atlantis both hidden and filled with air to make room for the seemingly ever-growing population. It had even become a problem. One they were working on solving.

Hyunjin tugged both Seungmin and Changbin along as he steered towards the Portal Dome's exit. It was slowly becoming brighter outside, meaning that it was probably around sunrise in Atlantis. How the infamous Lost City had managed to have a day-night cycle despite the constant darkness of the deep ocean that surrounded it was a mystery whose answer can probably be found when extensively studying the ancient magics. All Seungmin would have to do was look into his family's library or ask his father. Maybe he should do that when he was free, but for now he really wanted to take a nap. Tiredness made his feet clumsy and his mind easily distracted.