Destined {𝕄𝕀ℕ𝕊𝕌ℕ𝔾}

Chapter Ninety-Five

Seungmin could barely breathe as he stared at the cloaked figure standing before them. The power of his magic thrummed in the air between them, pressing down on his lungs so hard that when he breathed, he inhaled nothing but the tangible spike of magic. Hyunjin was oblivious to it, golden eyes flaring as he appraised their concealed enemy.

Jisung's figure quickly faded from view, and he swallowed thickly, closing his eyes for a moment to refocus his mind. When he opened them again, he was able to breathe through the suffocating magic that threatened to crush him. Perhaps he'd been lying when he'd told Jisung they could handle this guy. But he'd try his damnedest – this wizard had abandoned all morals and values the moment he'd agreed to work with the Vampire King.

It wasn't something they could easily condone, was it?

Besides, Jisung had an even fiercer opponent to face – the Vampire King wouldn't fall easily, especially if he knew his own weakness. He sincerely hoped that he hadn't figured Minho out yet; that put a serious dent in their plans.

"It is my regret that I must fight youths with such potential," the hybrid said, voice deep and gravelly, resounding off the walls around them, echoing inside their heads. Seungmin gritted his teeth, purple eyes flaring in denial of the pressure the magic forced upon him. "You are strong, child," he said softly, hands rising to his hood. "But you are not nearly strong enough to remove me from of this misery."

The hood fell, pooling around his shoulders. Seungmin gasped, eyes widening as he stared at the face littered with markings carved into the hollows of his cheeks, marring his youthful skin. His eyes were a brilliant shade of green, swirling with flecks of gold, marking him as one of the Legendary Triad – one of the first wizards, Baekhyeon, the master of destruction.

He was a man of legend, one of the most powerful wizards to have ever lived throughout history, known mainly for his transformative and attack strength – he was the father of all of the battle spells wizards used today, unlike his two brothers who specialized in healing, the second in elements.

He had disappeared without a trace a long, long time ago – nobody had ever found his body. Most had rumored him to have succumbed to the strain of his own powers, thus destroying himself and any proof that he had existed at all.

His eyes were sad as he surveyed Seungmin's expression, his expression melancholic. "I apologize," he whispered, the magic in the room intensifying. "But I must do as my master commands, and my current order is to defeat you."

Seungmin's legs threatened to give way beneath him as he was filled with a sudden, overwhelming, all-consuming feeling of hopelessness – they couldn't defeat one of the Legendary Triad. He was thousands of years old by now – even his brothers had faded into the pages of history by then. Hyunjin's eyes flickered over towards him in a silent question since he was not partial to the mind-link shared by wolves.

He tried schooling his features – Hyunjin didn't know who this man was, that much was obvious; nor should he, Seungmin thought as magic began to writhe around his hands, this wasn't part of his history. This wasn't a hero most knew of other than in passing – but Seungmin had always regarded this man as a myth, the embodiment of everything a wizard should strive to become.

His gut churned as he stood on the opposite side of that very hero, knowing that he was fighting a war for the better of the people he cared about.

His eyes slid over towards Hyunjin, whose teeth were bared, crouched low to the ground, poised to attack. Seungmin briefly wondered if any of the spells he had in his repertoire would do any good against a wizard of this caliber. He wasn't yet at the level of knowing any forbidden spells – those were perhaps the only ones strong enough to defeat this one.