INFERNO ༄ PARK JISUNG

two

"I'm sure my parents will be happy you came for dinner, it's been awhile since you visited." Seorin locked the door behind them, setting her keys on the rack.

"Morkie!" a small voice squeaked, attacking the boy's left calf with a hug.

"What's up, guppy?" he leaned down to her height, holding his hand out for a fist bump.

"Aerin, get off his leg." Seorin rolled her eyes, picking up the little girl from the ground. "It's been so long since Morkie came, is he gonna stay? I really wanna play." she pouted, squirming around in Seorin's arms.

"Oh, Mark! It's been a while since you last came, how are you?" Aera, her mother, walked up to him from the kitchen, engulfing him in a warm hug. "I'm all good, Mrs. Baek. Dinner smells amazing, by the way." he flashed a charming smile, followed with a respectful bow.

"You're staying, right?"

Mark responded with a nod yes.

"Great, I'll tell my husband to invite your father. He'll happy to see you after work!" Aera grinned, returning back to the stove.

"Guess this is an unexpected Lee family visit." Mark shrugged, joining the two sisters on the couch. They were sat watching a kids movie, Ponyo, which Aerin had been raving over the past couple days.

"Look, I can make a bubble like them!" the four year old held up her palm, twirling her finger to create the smallest circle of water in the air.

"Dang, you might just take my spot as a leader." Seorin chuckled, giving her a high five afterwards. "Seriously, you already water shift better than your sister." Mark teased, earning a punch on the shoulder from her.

"You got a ride for school tomorrow?" he asked, knowing he wouldn't be there to pick up Seorin anymore.

"Hyerin still exists, dummy. It'll be nice to finally have some girl time away from you." she bantered. Throughout their childhood, it had always been Seorin and Mark, plus their good friend Yoo Hyerin. If there's anyone that knew Seorin better than him, it was her. The three were inseparable, building a sibling like bond at a young age.

"Daddy!" Aerin squealed, wiggling out of Mark's grip to run to her father. The man of the house had finally arrived, his best friend following right behind him.

"How're my girls?" Seojoon, the water shifting leader, pulled her into his arms, twirling the toddler in the air. A grin danced onto his face, seeing his world in his hands; the best joy any father could experience.

"Great, I was starving. I'm glad you could join us as well, Mr. Lee!" Seorin smiled at the man behind him, walking over to the dining table.

"Good evening, Mr. Baek!" Mark greeted him with a bow, along with a hug from his own father. The two families gathered around the table, settling down to have a meal.

"How was work, boys?" Aera asked, setting down a bowl of black bean noodles ready to serve.

"Ah, the usual. The same old pestering old men though." Seojoon joked as he took a bite of the noodles, slurping them with the chopsticks.

"Don't get me started on Park Jiwoon, the man couldn't stop rambling about his ridiculous proposals." Minchul, Mark's father, added.

Mark and Seorin eyed each other from across the table, both recalling the incident that occurred earlier at the convenience store.

"Yeah, his son is quite the kid too." Mark muttered, shoving a plentiful amount of noodles into his mouth. Aerin let out small giggles seeing the sauce gather at the corners of his lip, making him quickly wipe it away in embarrassment.

"Park Jisung, correct? Isn't he in your grade, Seorin?" Seojoon questioned.

Seorin looked up, awkwardly chewing fast enough to answer his question. "Uh, unfortunately." she spoke, almost choking on a noodle in the process. The last thing she wanted to to was think about that menace, attempting to quickly brush off his questions.

"He's the prodigy, isn't he?" Aera commented, stating common knowledge that everyone in the Republic knew. It was no secret that Park Jiwoon had birthed and raised one of the most skilled adolescents in the nation, his perfect heir to the leader throne. With a father figure as wicked as him, it was only understandable that the country feared his genius son to take over.

"That doesn't mean anything when we have our own prodigy right here." Minchul smirked, looking at the two kids sitting across each other.

"Wow, thanks dad!" Mark's eyes lit up.

"Not you, I was talking about Seorin." he let out a hearty laugh, making his son sink back down in his seat. The rest of the table joined in, Seorin sticking out her tongue at him.

After this generation of leaders step down, the next lineup was highly anticipated, holding some of the strongest shifters the world had ever seen. With Jisung and Seorin being the next said inheritors, the people don't know what to expect with two prodigies of opposing elements leading the Republic.

"Maybe my daughter can finally dethrone that Park bloodline." Seojoon joked, but knew he held some truth behind the statement.

Memories of Park Jiwoon mentioning his plans of destroying the peace of the Neo Elemental Republic rang in his mind, echoing like a never ending alarm. Of course, the law restricted him from doing so, not to mention, his lack of shifting ability, but anxiety couldn't stop building up in his conscience with the idea of it.

Truthfully, he feared the future of his daughters the most, especially Seorin's who would possibly have to face the consequences of Jisung's upbringings if he were to ever carry out his father's wishes.

There was no doubt in anyone's mind that Park Jisung had the power to end the peace with just a snap of the finger, if he really wanted to.

"I would rather marry a fire shifter before leading the Republic alongside of Park Jisung." Seorin scoffed, trying to lighten the reality of the situation.

"Nah, don't even joke about liking a fire shifter. They're nothing but arrogant pricks." Mark followed up, gaining giggles from the two sisters.

"I would step down from my position before I let one of my daughters date those fire shifting nutheads." Seojoon cleared his throat, keeping a joking, but stern tone of voice.

She rolled her eyes in response, leaning back into her chair. "Trust me, I would never date a fire shifter."

chapter two — empty promises

i kinda wanna include a map/diagram of how korea is split into the republic but is that too much effort for this book? oiiii idk