The End of Gods (A Welcome to the Underworld Novel, Book 4) (56 page)

“Only through blood,” Young Jae reasoned guiltlessly. “She has severed every emotional tie there is and is nothing but the bane of my existence now.” His eyes turned cold and unforgiving. “I haven’t forgotten what she had done to me, and I will make sure she pays for everything.” His anger quelled briefly while he gazed at Tae Hyun in pity. “But that doesn’t mean you or your family has to suffer with her.” His eyes landed on Kang Min and Hae Jin. “She is not worth protecting, Tae Hyun. She isn’t worth your sister’s, Kang Min’s, and their baby’s life.” He continued to coax Tae Hyun, knowing just the right words to say. “One life for three lives. Is that not the better deal? Just call her, get her to come here, and the conditions will be met. Hae Jin, Kang Min, and their unborn child will be set free. Will that not be worth her sacrifice?”

“She will not be coming,” Tae Hyun replied inflexibly, knowing that Young Jae couldn’t care less about his sister, Kang Min, or their unborn baby. He saw right through it. All Young Jae was after was his revenge.

Young Jae’s face morphed into a savage expression. The muscles in his jaw leapt in anger. Tae Hyun’s dismissal did not sit well with him.

Breathing deeply, as though to rally together his composure, Tae Hyun turned back to Ji Hoon and made him a proposition that Ji Hoon couldn’t refuse.

“Just let them go, Ji Hoon,” Tae Hyun said tactfully. There was no more mockery or smugness in his voice. He was genuinely there to help his sister and Kang Min while keeping Yoori safe. Upsetting Ji Hoon would only harm his efforts. He could no longer behave like a protective man; he had to behave like a reasonable businessman. “No matter what has happened, the truth is . . . you got the one thing you’ve always wanted: me at your mercy. You hate me, and I hate you more than I’ve ever hated anyone in my life. Under any other circumstances, you know that I’m not the type who will voluntarily fall unto anyone’s mercy. However, if you let them go right now, I will let you impart whatever hell you want to bestow on me.”

Ji Hoon’s eyes lit up in interest as Tae Hyun went on.

“You can beat me, spit on me, and bruise any pride there is for me to have. In turn, I will not do a thing about it. I will not fight you back.” He looked at him challengingly. “Will you really forgo this opportunity—something this enticing as to having the chance to amply embarrass me in front of our world—just because you want Yoori here as well? If she comes, then you know we both will fight to the death. However, if you agree to this, then I will forfeit any fight within me and you will get what you’ve always wanted: the chance to show the Underworld why you are better than me.”

Ji Hoon’s mouth drew up into a slow, calculating smile. He loved the contents of this proposition.

“Well, that changes the conditions, doesn’t it?” he mused carelessly, his mood brightening at the prospect of such an enticing proposal. His decision made, his eyes temporarily found Young Jae’s, whose arms were folded in front of his chest. He regarded Ji Hoon with a critical stare. It seemed that even Young Jae knew that this proposal was something Ji Hoon was going to agree to, no matter how much he wanted him to turn his back against it.

“Please take a seat, Young Jae,” Ji Hoon said diplomatically, his focus returning to Tae Hyun. “There has been a slight change in the conditions. This is an opportunity I can’t pass up. I want to see if Kwon Tae Hyun is truly the heroic King he appears to be.”

Young Jae took a moment to stare at Tae Hyun as if to say,
“You’ve just made the biggest mistake.”
Then, with his head held high, he sat down on his throne, his emotionless eyes also interested in what was about to transpire before them.

“If you can last for a sizeable amount of time, then I’ll
consider
letting them go,” Ji Hoon prompted, cracking the bones within his hands and neck in anticipation. He stared directly at a valiant Tae Hyun. With vindictive malice pouring from his face, Ji Hoon callously added, “I will enjoy every second of this.”

Then—

Bam!

The destructive sound of bone hitting flesh vibrated into the arena. It was shortly followed by shuffling and shocked whispers from the audience. They were astonished to witness the once mighty King of Serpents take Ji Hoon’s assault. They were more bewildered to see Tae Hyun continue to take the assault as Ji Hoon went after him without mercy.

Bam!

As he assaulted Tae Hyun, Ji Hoon didn’t let this historic moment pass him by. Glorifying in this very occasion, he used it as an opportunity to show the Underworld audience why they should’ve revered him over Tae Hyun, and why he was a better King than Tae Hyun.

“This is your King!” Ji Hoon stated to the hundreds upon hundreds of Serpents sitting in the arena, all of whom were watching in disbelief. They couldn’t believe their once mighty God had fallen so far from grace.

The entirety of the Serpents gang, as well as some Siberian Tigers, were quiet with astonishment. The only gangs who seemed to be enjoying this were the Skulls and Scorpions sitting in the crowd. They cheered Ji Hoon on with their laughter and roars of approval.

“He renounced you when you gave him your allegiance!”

Bam!

“He deserted you when you needed him most!”

Bam!

“And he abandoned you when you risked your lives for him!”

Every sentence was enunciated with a punch that left Tae Hyun reeling to one side. Impressively, regardless of how often he was hit, Tae Hyun would never stay down. He would always get back up. He did not fight back, but he also did not just lie down and play dead. He persevered, no matter how tied his hands were and no matter how demeaning the entire thing was.

“You gave up everything for him, and what does he do in return?” Ji Hoon continued to address the crowd, punching Tae Hyun across the skull. The attack left him to tumble down momentarily. “He spits on your faces, giving all of you up to be the one thing we were all trained never to be”—a gasp spurted from Tae Hyun after Ji Hoon kneed him across the stomach. Ji Hoon further exacerbated that attack by elbowing him across the face, triggering blood to seep out from his lips— “weak and
distracted
.”

Ji Hoon laughed maliciously, walking after Tae Hyun after he crashed to the floor.

Tae Hyun’s breathing was an uneven hoarse. In the background, the muffled tears and screams from Hae Jin and Kang Min could be faintly heard. While the majority of the Underworld watched in excitement, all Hae Jin and Kang Min could do was watch helplessly as Tae Hyun took all of this embarrassment and pain for them.

“He gave up all the glory that has been given to him, and
for what
? For
my
second helpings? For a worthless
w
hor—
ugh!
”

Ji Hoon never got to finish his sentence when Tae Hyun’s foot flew across his cheek, battering him across the side of his face and causing his bones to vibrate.

With a growl to rival the most ferocious beast in the wild, Tae Hyun delivered a second kick that was dispensed with so much force and anger that once the sole of his shoe landed on Ji Hoon’s chest, the ground abandoned his feet and Ji Hoon was sent flying across the arena. He flew like a skipping rock, his body tumbling violently onto the golden onyx floor.

The Underworld reacted in uproar.

Some were shaking their heads smugly, knowing that a prideful King like Tae Hyun would never be able to sit back and not fight Ji Hoon back, while others were outraged to see their sole King be beaten down so fast.

Tae Hyun was breathing hard, his eyes dangerous and scorching with fury.

He was able to withstand any physical assault that Ji Hoon wanted to bestow upon him. The only thing that he could not stand—the only thing that his instinctive reflexes could not tolerate—was someone speaking so crassly about Yoori.

Tae Hyun was angry.

For a moment, he forgot
why
he was accepting all of this embarrassment in the first place. His emotions getting the better of him, he charged towards Ji Hoon, intent on further making him pay for his insolence. He stopped short when the sound of a vicious kick echoed throughout the arena, reminding him of the mistake he made by hitting Ji Hoon back and reminding him of the conditions he agreed to with Ji Hoon just moments prior.

Tae Hyun’s eyes enlarged when he saw blood spurting out from Hae Jin’s nostrils, signifying to him that after seeing him attack Ji Hoon back, Yen had taken it upon herself to punish Hae Jin in the same violent manner.

Though she was gagged, the bloodcurdling groan that emitted from Hae Jin did nothing to hide the excruciating pain she was in. One could see how hard she was fighting to not show that she was in pain. She did not want her brother and her boyfriend to worry about her. Sadly, all of that determination took a backseat to the instinctive nerves of her body, which were crying in the purest of misery.

Looking as if someone had just slammed a sledgehammer into his stomach, Tae Hyun’s face grimaced in torture. It was clear he blamed himself. Hae Jin was being tortured because of his rash actions. The anguish in his eyes only grew worse when he heard Ji Hoon laughing.

Ji Hoon stood up from behind him and wiped the small bout of blood from the side of his lips. He smiled in satisfaction. He knew the outburst by Tae Hyun was a one-off. He still had him right where he wanted him.

Extending a hand out to the right side of the arena, a kendo stick flew in from one of his Skulls in the crowd. The weapon landed obediently in Ji Hoon’s hand. With the new weapon in his possession, Ji Hoon sauntered back to Tae Hyun with a malicious smirk. He was very aware that after seeing the punishment his baby sister had to endure, Tae Hyun would do well to control his instincts. This time around, it was guaranteed that Tae Hyun wasn’t going to fight back. Tae Hyun was going to take every abuse he wanted to give, and Ji Hoon loved every moment of this power he had.

Swoosh!

Eager to further torture Tae Hyun, he raised the stick and delivered a slash across Tae Hyun’s back. Half a second later, he circled around Tae Hyun and jabbed the stick into his hard stomach, finishing the triple attack by swiping the powerful weapon across Tae Hyun’s face.

Tae Hyun spit out blood from the brutal attack. In the face of this abuse, he tried to maintain his equilibrium—his composure.

“You got anymore of that, Tae Hyun?” Ji Hoon laughed out haughtily. He enjoyed that Tae Hyun was simply standing there, not saying anything and not making a move to attack him.

It was clear in Tae Hyun’s pained expression that he had learned his lesson in this game. Every time he fought back, Hae Jin would pay for his lack of self-control. This was something that he wasn’t going to let happen again.

“You’re not going to fight back?” Ji Hoon taunted before whipping the stick in the air and jabbing it into Tae Hyun’s stomach again. He finished the assault by hitting him across the face with the bamboo stick, causing Tae Hyun to topple to the side. “You’re not going to show me why you’re better than me?”

With his kendo stick firmly held in his hand, Ji Hoon began to mercilessly beat Tae Hyun with it.

The sound of bamboo hitting flesh and bones rumbled throughout the enormous amphitheater. During the course of this, Tae Hyun took every hit, every attack, and every embarrassment with self-restrained misery and control.

“Who do you think you are?” Ji Hoon jeered, continuously hitting Tae Hyun with the vicious stick. “You think you’re being so noble. The truth is: you’re nothing but a pathetic piece of
s
hit right now.” He cruelly laughed at Tae Hyun’s lack of reply towards these insults. “This is the life you wanted, Tae Hyun? A life without power? A life where you’re at the mercy of Gods like me?” His laughter grew after he kneed Tae Hyun across the face for trying to get back up. Ji Hoon lifted his stick, prepared to hit Tae Hyun several more times with it. “Is she really worth all of this? Is the Queen really worth all of thi—?”

A collective gasp filled the amphitheater as Ji Hoon delivered another attack to Tae Hyun.

The velocity of the flying kendo stick was quick with speed, but not powerful enough by nature to be able to withstand the hand that appeared out of nowhere. At the same second Ji Hoon’s arm went down for the attack, it was abruptly stopped midway when a powerful hand gripped his forearm.

“What the fuck?” Ji Hoon whispered, stunned as to who had the audacity to stop him. He turned around, intent on beating the fuck out of the person who intervened.

His angry eyes morphed into shock when there she stood before him—the Queen of the Underworld—staring at him with unforgiving fire.

“Get,” Yoori incited angrily, sending chills throughout the arena with the fury in her voice, “the
fuck
away from my boyfriend.”

A muscle cracked within Ji Hoon’s arm when she mercilessly twisted it back. As a result, the kendo stick flew free from his grasp and fell into her hand. She did not waste this weapon of opportunity.

Swoosh!

“Umph!”

With the velocity of an expert fighter, Yoori wielded the stick in the air and bequeathed Ji Hoon with the same assault he had been bestowing upon Tae Hyun. The kendo stick struck his face, triggering him to tumble to the side. Right before his knees hit the floor, she performed an uppercut using the blunt head of the stick against his jaw. For good measure, she added in a powerful sidekick that had Ji Hoon falling to the floor with a loud
thud!