𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑼𝒏𝒅𝒆𝒓𝑾𝒐𝒓𝒍𝒅 𝑫𝒚𝒏𝒂𝒔𝒕𝒚

𝟒𝟏

"A parcel from EXO," Jin broke the cold ice of the room.

Namjoon leaned back on the sofa, his hand resting on the headrest, the other one pressed to his mouth. After a momentary silence, he spoke up. 

"Will someone open it?" he asked, his deep, gravelly voice cutting through the quiet.

Everyone in the room turned to him, waiting for someone to volunteer.

Jennie stood up from her seat and slowly walked over to the box, picking it up carefully.

Slowly, she opened the box.

Inside the box, there was a small, neatly folded piece of paper. It was plain, and the only thing in the box. She picked it up and looked at it, her eyes unreadable.

Unfolding the paper carefully, her eyes slowly scanned over the words written on it. After a moment, her expression changed slightly, and she began to read aloud.

"Imagine you're in a dark room, how do you get out?"

"What the fuck is that?" Jimin asked, tilting his head to the side.

Rosé who was sitting next to Jisoo turned to him with a fake smile, "How long have you been in the Mafia?"

Jimin looked back at her with a smug look on his face, "Ten years," he said proudly, his chest puffed out slightly.

Rosé chuckled sarcastically. "Congratulations, those ten years were a waste."

Jimin's face fell at her words. " Excuse me? What do you mean?" he scowled at her.

"It's a riddle by our rivals," Rosé explained, rolling her eyes and flipping her hair.

Jennie spoke up, repeating the riddle quietly but clearly.  "Imagine you're in a dark room, how do you get out?"

Lisa rolled her eyes at the simplicity of the riddle. "Open the damn door," she said in an 'isn't it obvious' tone.

Jennie shook her head at Lisa's answer. "No, maknae. It's something else."

J-hope, who was leaning against the wall, spoke up again. "Maybe it's a trap."

Jennie walked towards the window and nodded slightly.  "Could be."

Namjoon leaned back further into the sofa, his eyes fixed on her as she looked out the window.

"What are you thinking?" he asked quietly.

Her gaze stayed focused on the view outside. "Imagine you're in a dark room, how do you get out?"

Jin leaned towards Jisoo and whispered into her ear, his voice barely audible, "Turn on the light." as they both laughed silently.

Jennie turned around and immediately pointed at him, "What did you say?"

Jin sat straight up, his gaze shifting to the others in the room.

He pointed at himself and said, "Me?" feigning innocence.

"Yes, you," Lisa said rolling her eyes.

Jin opened his mouth to protest, but Jennie cut him off before he could start.

"Just answer the question," she said firmly, crossing her arms over her chest.

Jin slumped back in his seat, realizing that there was no way out of this.

"I said turn on the light " he muttered back, avoiding direct eye contact.

Lisa snorted at his response, rolling her eyes.

"That's pretty stupid, hyung," she said, her tone as blunt as always.

Jin shot her a glare, but before he could retort, J-hope spoke up.

"It actually makes sense," he said, pushing himself off the wall and walking towards the light switch.

As J-hope neared the light switch, Jennie's eyes widened, realization dawning upon her.

"Wait," she said urgently, "don't turn it on yet."

J-hope paused midway, his hand still reaching for the switch. "Why not?"

Jennie's gaze darted back to the paper in her hand, rereading the riddle silently.

"Think about it," she said. "Why would our rivals send this riddle if the answer was just turning on the light?"

RM leaned forward, his eyebrows furrowed in thought. "She's right," he said. "It's too simple to be the actual solution."

"What if it's rigged? What if turning on the light triggers something?" Jimin asked, his eyes narrowing.

Jennie nodded, "Exactly."

Lisa drummed her fingers on the armrest of the sofa.

"What if there's another step to the riddle we haven't figured out yet?"

Jennie turned to Lisa, her eyes serious. "Maknae, what's the darkest place owned by EXO?"

Lisa pondered the question for a moment, her mind whirling with possibilities. "Um... their training facility!" she answered after a moment. "It's underground, and they do not use lights down there."

Namjoon perked up at Lisa's answer, a frown creasing his forehead. "Where is it?"

"Busan," she replied succinctly, her eyes flickering to Jennie before shifting her gaze back to Namjoon.

Taking a deep breath, Jennie bit her lower lip declaring her final words, "Let's go to Busan then."

Everyone in the room was taken aback by her sudden decision, their eyes widening.

J-hope took a step forward, his hands held out in a placating gesture. "Hold on a moment," he said. "We can't just barge into Busan without a plan."

Jisoo chimed in, "Who says we won't have a plan?"

J-hope shot her a look before throwing a question, "and what plan do you suggest Noona?"

"The plan's simple. We infiltrate the training base, locate the information, and get out as quickly and quietly as possible."

Jungkook stood up from his seat, smirking, "Then let's go."

Jennie turned away from the window, her eyes flickering over everyone in the room.

"Not all of us can go there," she began. "We need someone to stay here and keep an eye on things."

"And who'll stay?"

Jennie turned to Namjoon, her gaze meeting his. "RM," she said, addressing him directly. "The hackers and those without weapons skills will stay here."

Namjoon nodded looking around. "Prince, V, and Kook are the snipers."

"V's and Jungkook's skills are unmatched," Namjoon explained, his eyes flickering over to Taehyung and Jungkook who were sitting quietly. "Prince is our tech expert, and he can also hold his own in a fight if needed."

Jennie turned to Jisoo with a smile. "You'll stay here," she said, her voice gentle. "We need your intelligence and strategic mind to oversee everything here."

"Get your stuff ready. We're heading to Busan tonight."