The End of Gods (A Welcome to the Underworld Novel, Book 4) (7 page)

He breathed deeply, his eyes swiveling from Tae Hyun and to Ji Hoon. Both were quiet as he surged on. “Both of you are great Kings, but do you think you’d be able to take our world to great heights if there’s a woman wearing you down, making you vulnerable to human emotions?” He looked at Ji Hoon. “An Soo Jin was that woman for you.” He faced Tae Hyun. “And Choi Yoori was that woman for you.”

He sighed, seeing the dawning lights of realization that filtered into both of their eyes. It had always been an age-old warning for any leader in the Underworld to be vigilant about the person they wanted their significant other to be. Love is considered flexible—power isn’t. A lover should never supersede the quest for power, the very thing their enigmatic and powerful world was built upon. If it did, then the Underworld population would be ready to tear that leader down and appoint another great leader to take his place.

“Love blinds even the best of Kings, and at this point in your lives, you have no time to be tied down.” He gazed directly at Tae Hyun, who was still fuming in silence. “I arranged for Ji Hoon to break you two up because she was unhealthy for our world. I saw what she was doing to you. I saw how human she made you, how much kinder and more irrational you’ve become since meeting her. I arranged for you to personally kick her out of the country because I know that despite my advice, you would never kill her and you would kill anyone who dared to touch her. I know that you believe I take enjoyment in pitting people against one another. Trust me when I say that I don’t have time for games. I’m doing all of this with the best intentions, not only as your Advisor, but also as the eldest Advisor in this world. I trust that I have two potential Lords standing next to me, and I offer no apologies for trying to keep the best and most skilled contender to be a revered Lord for my world. With all that said, I’m happy that both of you have severed ties with her and are done with her.” He regarded them, his fierce eyes scrutinizing them. “You are both done with her,
right
?”

“I’m a competitive guy,” Ji Hoon stated haughtily, his eyes on Tae Hyun. “As long as Kwon Tae Hyun doesn’t prance around with my sloppy seconds, then I’m good. Choi Yoori evokes no emotional attachment from me.” He spared a glance at the crowd of girls staring in their direction, admiring both him and Tae Hyun. “I have my options of whores who are ready to kneel before me.”

Ju Won grinned at Ji Hoon’s words before turning to Tae Hyun. “And yourself, Tae Hyun?”

Tae Hyun smirked dryly, staring into Ju Won’s eyes with dark conviction. “Choi Yoori is dead to me. I gave her the chance to live and have already told her that if I see her again, I’m bypassing the courtesies and I’ll do what’s necessary to protect my throne. She evokes no more emotional attachment from me, nor does she continue to hold my interest. She was merely a mistake that I should’ve gotten rid of sooner. It was my pleasure to kick her out of this country.”

Ju Won grinned widely while Ji Hoon scoffed disbelievingly. Before either Ju Won or Ji Hoon could respond to Tae Hyun’s words, a man dressed in a grey suit promptly interrupted them.

“Sir,” Ju Won’s right-hand man said tentatively, nervously handing him a silver cellphone, “you have a phone call.”

“Can’t you see that I’m busy?” he snapped. Ju Won wasn’t a crime lord who appreciated being interrupted, especially when he was in the middle of a conversation with the Kings of the Underworld.

“It’s the King of Scorpions,” his right-hand man replied timidly, holding the phone out. His body shifted uncomfortably under his suit. Despite his trepidation, he stood in his stance. He was aware that Ju Won hated being interrupted, but he was also aware that the eldest Advisor would not ignore a phone call from the elusive King of Scorpions.

Vigilance met the eyes of Tae Hyun and Ji Hoon. Both alertly tensed up while Ju Won stared at the phone for a few lingering moments. After a few breaths, he grabbed the phone, motioned for his right-hand man to leave them, and put the phone on speaker.

“Young Jae?” Ju Won asked carefully, his voice tightly guarded.

The crowd around them chattered happily in the background as the celebratory music continued to grace the air. They were all blissfully unaware of the tense phone call that was about to take place.

A soft chuckle resonated from the receiver. Soon after, the familiar voice sauntered out. “It’s good to hear your voice again, uncle. It’s been a while.”

Ju Won closed his eyes in aggravation when it was confirmed that it was indeed the King of Scorpions on the phone. Tae Hyun shared this aversion while Ji Hoon simply held a mask of curiosity on his face.

Unwilling to lose his composure, though it was blatant that Young Jae was Ju Won’s least favorite person, Ju Won continued to diplomatically speak into the phone.

“Young Jae, your presence would’ve been appreciated here,” he said with forced warmth, concealing the hatred he harbored for Young Jae. “You’ve been out of our world for quite some time. I would’ve appreciated a little reunion of the Titans here.”

“I would be there, but some . . .” A pause lingered for a few pregnant seconds before he said, “
favorable
things are occurring in Japan, and it requires my presence. I’m sorry that I can’t be there for your party. I’m even more apologetic that I can’t be there to see which of my fellow Kings would become your crowned heir.” He laughed again and casually added, “They
are
standing beside you, aren’t they?”

A jolt of surprise coursed through the three at his statement.

The edge of Tae Hyun’s lips lifted into a smirk. He stared lethally at the phone. “You can see us, Young Jae?”

Young Jae chuckled as Ji Hoon and Ju Won’s eyes roamed around the crowded rotunda room for signs of the King of Scorpions. While their eyes scoured the room, Tae Hyun kept his eyes solidified on the phone. He knew that Young Jae wasn’t in attendance tonight.

“Tae Hyun,” Young Jae greeted as if he was a long lost friend. “Some of my associates are in attendance. They are giving me a live feed about what’s happening over there. I was told that you and Ji Hoon made some impressive speeches—congratulations on that. It is a rarity to impress anyone in our world.” Tae Hyun and Ji Hoon did not bother to express their thanks to him, and Young Jae did not wait for it. He brought everyone back on to another topic of conversation. “In any case, I apologize for not being able to see you again, uncle, especially when I made an appearance for the masquerade ball a few weeks ago and ran into Tae Hyun and Ji Hoon.”

Much to his own dismay, Ju Won’s eyes enlarged at this revelation.

He looked at Tae Hyun and Ji Hoon. Both were staring at him without an apology in their eyes for withholding this information from him.

He veered his attention back to Young Jae. Although his hardened expression betrayed his emotions, Ju Won kept his voice even. “You were in Korea?”

“Very recently,” Young Jae confirmed haughtily, undoubtedly aware that it was pissing Ju Won off that he didn’t realize Young Jae crashed a party that
he
threw. “I was there for a couple of days, had a small errand to run, but unfortunately, it was veered off by the King of Serpents. Regardless, I’m in the process of working things out now. This reminds me . . . why isn’t my baby sister there?”

“Apparently she’s on the run, Young Jae,” Ji Hoon shared blithely. His eyes teemed with amusement as he gazed at Tae Hyun. “Tae Hyun wasn’t particularly fond of the fact that she killed his mother.”

Young Jae let out an amused laugh. “Of course he wouldn’t be.”

While Ju Won’s face displayed alarm at this information, Tae Hyun looked livid. Anger shot through his eyes when Young Jae’s taunting laughter rolled over him.

Tae Hyun looked at Ji Hoon with elevated hatred. “You were working with Young Jae?”

Young Jae answered in Ji Hoon’s place.

“Ji Hoon and I may not see eye-to-eye on a lot of things, but we have always been the types to put things aside and work together towards a similar goal. I didn’t want you with my sister, and he didn’t want you with my sister, so we worked it out.” Another pause came before a woman’s voice was heard murmuring in the background. Young Jae’s voice came through again. “In any case, it’s great to hear that everyone is having a wonderful time. My wife and I have meetings to attend now. I’m glad I got to catch up with all of you before I make my return to Korea. Happy birthday, uncle. I look forward to seeing you soon.”

Click.

The fury that spilled out of Ju Won was transparent, especially when the phone shattered against the expensive tiles. Though there was steam coming out of his ears, he made sure to keep what was left of his cool while addressing his advisees.

“Both of you didn’t think it was necessary to tell me he was at my party?” Ju Won asked through gritted teeth.

“Slipped my mind,” Tae Hyun provided, unwilling to apologize. Using this moment as his leeway, he added, “You hate him, I hate him. Make the right choice tonight, give me that throne, and I’ll kill him for you.”

Interest lit Ju Won’s eyes at the proposition.

Ji Hoon swallowed tightly, shifting closer to Ju Won. He did not hesitate to make his own proposition. “I may have gone to Young Jae briefly to gather suitable information to break them up, but I assure you he doesn’t have any loyalty from me. Give me the throne, and I’ll be happy to give you his head on a silver platter.”

Ju Won’s mouth curved into a calculating smile. He openly considered their promises. “I’ll consider everything,” he said, his fury subsiding substantially. “Thank you both for your attendance. I’m sorry to one of you that it’s not going to work out tonight. Now please go enjoy the night while I try to forget about the bloodsucking bastard who has raised my blood pressure with his simple existence.”

Kicking the broken cellphone as he walked away, an irate Ju Won immediately found Jung Min and Dong Min, leaving Tae Hyun and Ji Hoon alone in his wake.

If the atmosphere was tense before with Ju Won as the buffer between the two of them, then the tension was multiplied a million times over as the two Kings stood parallel to one another. Both were staring quietly at each other, neither saying anything for a long time.

It was Tae Hyun who decided to finally break the silence. “Young Jae was the one who told you about Soo Jin killing my mother?”

Always to the point. That was always Tae Hyun’s personality.

“He confirmed it,” Ji Hoon clarified with no hint of remorse or shame. “Soo Jin had bragged about it once, but I didn’t take her seriously. Yet, when Ju Won requested that I do him this favor and when it was clear that I couldn’t sway Yoori with my own charms, I decided to play another piece on the chess board.”

“You weren’t afraid that I’d kill her after finding out?” Tae Hyun asked disbelievingly, his eyes still wondering how much this girl meant to Ji Hoon—if she even meant anything other than a possession to him.

“Why didn’t you?” Ji Hoon asked instead, genuinely curious.

Unable—or unwilling—to answer it himself, Tae Hyun allowed the silence from his lips to answer for him.

Ji Hoon laughed sardonically, shaking his head at Tae Hyun. “Of course, how could you kill your innocent Yoori when it was the bitch Soo Jin who caused all this chaos?” Ji Hoon mocked with amusement, feeding on the fact that Tae Hyun was visibly upset over the loss of the one who stole his heart.

Ji Hoon, much like Tae Hyun, was a cunning and observant King. He knew what buttons to push in order to force his enemies over the edge.

“And to answer your question,” Ji Hoon said tauntingly. “I trusted that you wouldn’t kill Yoori. Even if I was wrong and you did, then it would’ve been no harm to me because it would only mean that in the end, you would never get to have her just like I didn’t get to have her.” Ji Hoon laughed with hilarity at the livid gaze on Tae Hyun’s face. He dramatically peered up at the dark sky swimming over the glass ceiling. He feigned a despondent sigh. “Poor thing. She must be crying her eyes out. Maybe after this, I should find her again and—”

Bam!

Ji Hoon didn’t see it coming.

The punch that Tae Hyun threw was as quick as a lightning bolt, and the strength he imparted was a force to be reckoned with as his iron-like fist rammed into Ji Hoon’s nose.

Blindsided by the sudden attack, Ji Hoon was left reeling when Tae Hyun, who wasn’t satisfied with a mere punch, drew his left leg high in the air, stopped above the apex of Ji Hoon’s head, and then with supreme strength, drew his leg downward and executed a powerful axe kick down on Ji Hoon’s face.

Boom!

“Augh!”

Ji Hoon was left stumbling into the crowd. Sounds of drinks being spilled and screams emitted at the sudden cargo falling onto them. Ji Hoon’s nose was already bleeding from Tae Hyun’s punch, but with the added blow of Tae Hyun’s merciless kick, what was left of Ji Hoon’s nose was ruined as blood poured like a waterfall from his nostrils. It also didn’t help the situation when the drink he was holding spilled on him as he fell to the floor. His face was utterly drenched with champagne and blood.

“Damn, did you see the fist and axe kick boss executed?” a couple of Serpents announced to one another while they watched the scene from the balconies.

“He didn’t even see his fist coming!” cried a 1
st
layer heir to his friends. He craned his neck, laughing with his fellow heirs as they enjoyed the scene before them.