Daesung stared at the envelope in his hands, sensing something off even before he tore it open. The paper inside was marked with the Worker’s insignia. As he unfolded it, a smirk crept onto his face—but it quickly faded as he began reading.

  

  "We surrendered too easily, didn’t we? You didn’t even stop to question it. That’s the funny part.

  And forget us—even Eli, someone you know can hold his ground against both you and Jihan alone, just gave up without a fight?

  Seven days from now, a war will begin.

  The five of you—Zack, Jaesung, Jihan, Daesung, and Jisoo—will go head-to-head with the combined forces of Hostel, Burn Knuckles, and the Workers."

  Daesung crushed the letter in his fist, veins bulging on his forearm as anger surged through him. He tore the paper apart and growled, "Jihan, call the others. Now."

  Jihan, without a word, pulled out his phone and contacted Zack, Jaesung, and Jisoo.

  Moments later, all five of them stood in front of Daesung in the training hall.

  Daesung turned to Jihan. “For the next seven days, you and I are training them ourselves.”

  Jihan raised an eyebrow. “Why now?”

  Daesung’s voice was steady, but heavy. “Because in seven days, we go to war. And you and I alone aren’t enough to take on three of the strongest gangs. At their current level, these three can’t even handle one gang on their own. We’ve got one week to bring out their full potential—no excuses.”

  Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

  Six Days Later

  Daesung met with Tatsuya in a quiet corner of the abandoned dojo.

  “We’ve done everything we could in six days. Jihan and I trained them relentlessly... but it’s still not enough. The five of us can’t take down three gangs.”

  Tatsuya nodded, calm and composed. “Then let’s play this smart. First, I’ll assign your opponents based on their structure. Their core fighters are: Hwan Doo, Bang Jitte, Eli, his right-hand Rowan, Jake, and Jinwoo.”

  He continued:

  

  
• 
  
    “Daesung, you’ll take on Hwan Doo and Bang Jitte.”
  
    


  
• 
  
    “Jihan will fight Jake and Jinwoo.”
  
    


  
• 
  
    “And I’m assigning a new member to your team—Sakura. Trained personally by Jun-Goo. He’ll take on the strongest pair: Eli and Rowan.”
  
    


  
• 
  
    “Zack, Jaesung, and Jisoo will handle the rest of their troops.”
  
    


  

  Daesung gave a silent nod. The weight of the coming battle pressed heavy on him, but he stood tall.

  The Day of the War

  Two teams stood facing each other, tension crackling in the air like a live wire.

  Jake stepped forward, eyes locked on Daesung. “So, you're that 'UI' kid everyone talks about... And Jihan—never thought I’d see the day you take orders from a 17-year-old.”

  Jihan smirked. “I’m 17 too.”

  Jake laughed. “Maybe. But you can hold your own in a one-on-one fight. He can’t.”

  Before anyone could react, Daesung charged forward, unleashing a brutal back spinning elbow aimed straight at Jake’s face. Jake barely managed to block it, but the next attack—a sharp roundhouse kick—landed clean, sending Jake stumbling.

  Daesung’s rage was flaring, his body ready to throw the entire strategy into chaos. Just as he was about to charge recklessly, Jihan grabbed his shoulder.

  “Stick to the plan.”

  Daesung exhaled sharply and nodded. One by one, each member of the allied team took their position, standing face-to-face with their assigned opponent.

  The air was still.

  Then—the war began.

  To Be Continued...