Ishihara // ATEEZ ✔

24 Riddle

"You know, it's still not too late to turn back. I can always go alone from here." She tugs her jacket closer, buckling the belt around her waist. She does her final check to Golden, the sleeping drug encased in a vial, her weapons and her own self. Yeosang's hands prove to be magic when it took her shoulder less than a day to be of full use - the wound hasn't healed completely but she is sure that she can already swing her weapons with the same hand. She rolls her shoulder a few times to make sure that she is definitely ready to jump into another fight. It doesn't hurt.

They glance at their clocks - it's 7p.m. They had went over their plans they cracked yesterday night during supper countless times, but they are still worried - so many things can go wrong, especially in Lucida. She now knows how the queen's mind works, and them breaking into the Lucida prison might not be the most welcoming sight for the queen. They had agreed to move at night, increasing the chances of them being able to move around unnoticed and if it all goes according to plan, they might be able to arrive back at Nyla as the next morning comes. It had been an agonizing wait, counting the hours before the sun finally sets. As every second passes, it means that Yunho's time in prison also increases, and Akira had been praying that her lieutenant is at least strong to go through a day.

As the time comes for them to embark, the trepidation in all eight of them are evident.

"I might not be the most courageous person but I won't back down. What worries you worries us too," Mingi replies, tightening the strap around his horse. In other circumstances, she might have felt touched. But in this case, she cannot help but feel that this is not something to be happy about. They are about to walk into a grave that they dug themselves.

Seonghwa nods as he jumps on top of his horse, getting comfortable. All of them are wearing the same fit - all black, mask at the ready and weapons to defend themselves. "There is no turning back."

The others - Hongjoong, Yeosang, San, Wooyoung and Jongho - gather around them, seemingly hard to let them go. They have all agreed on this but they never said it out loud - there is a chance that they will never make it back alive. In fact, it's down to 70-30. 70% being the chances of them not coming back.

San approaches Seonghwa, pats the horse before saying something only loud enough for the latter to hear, "About that night Akira got hurt, I'm really sorry. I didn't mean to be so insensitive about it."

Seonghwa grips the reins of his horse. "It's fine. I know you're loyal to the king and you're worried about her-" He glances at Akira, who's busy talking to Wooyoung and Hongjoong, possibly being chastised for one last time. "-finding out the true identity of the king. You're not wrong, but she's on our side now."

He seems to be thinking for a moment. "She might be on our side now, but you won't know whether she's still trying to uncover the Shadow King's secret or not. She is still a soldier from Lucida. First and foremost, we're residents of Nyla. Our priority is the king."

"Then let her, we don't have anything else to hide. And it seems like our priorities are a bit different." He instructs his horse to move a few steps forward, trying to escape from San. It's obvious that he still hasn't forgiven him fully for that night. He doesn't want to think about the king for the time being; what he wants to focus now is the mission they're about to set on. The servant only looks at him with disappointment in his eyes, clearly not satisfied with how he's treating the subject about their king.

Their horses move forward under their instructions, approaching the arched entrance. They pass under the structure with a new set of determination, accompanied by a croaky 'good luck' from Wooyoung and a strained 'please don't die' from Yeosang. There is no use strolling as they have no time to waste, so their horses break into faster gallops, with Mingi leading the way. They pass through the town at a much slower pace, trying to avoid running over curious residents and a hoarde of enthusiastic onlookers. Mingi throws subdued greetings towards them, while Seonghwa only passes them with a slight nod.