The mist hung thick beneath the canopy of the eastern forest, veiling roots and shadows alike. Sa Gwan led the trio in silence, his hand resting loosely on the hilt at his waist. Ilho moved beside him with steady breaths, and Ryul kept pace just ahead of Blue.

  They'd been searching for signs of the missing scouting camp since dawn, but the deeper they went, the more the forest seemed to swallow the trail.

  Blue glanced at Ryul, watching the tension in his shoulders. “You’ve been quiet this whole time. Is something bothering you?”

  Ryul didn’t answer at first. Only when they paused near a moss-covered tree did he finally speak.

  “It’s So-Yeon,” Blue said, voice low. “Why do you seem so... bitter toward her? I’ve already forgiven her. So why can’t you?”

  Ryul turned slowly to face him. There was no anger in his expression—just a worn weight behind his eyes.

  “Hyung,” he said quietly, “you’ve been gone so long. I’m afraid... there’s so much you don’t know.”

  He looked away, as if dragging the memories to the surface was its own kind of pain.

  “It’s not that I hate her. But she did stab you. And after you died… everything fell apart. We were left to fend for ourselves. So-Yeon disappeared. She never came back. Never even looked for us.”

  Blue opened his mouth, but Ryul raised a hand.

  “Eventually, Namgung Hyeon found us. Only Seori went with him. Kwan followed the Sword Saint. Haejin and I wandered Chengdu and the nearby villages, just trying to survive.

  “Haejin... he took your death the hardest. You were the only father he’d ever really known. The Heavenly Demon Cult found him when he was weakest. They used that despair—twisted it. That’s how they got him.”

  Blue’s breath caught in his throat.

  “I kept wandering alone until Elder Wu Cheng found me. He took me to Wudang. Gave me a roof, training... a path.”

  He finally looked back at Blue, his voice quieter now.

  “When I saw you again—really saw you—all those memories came back. Everything we lost. Maybe it’s regret. Maybe a grudge. I’m not even sure anymore. But after she stabbed you, something inside me hardened. And I can’t let it go.”

  Blue’s eyes dropped to the forest floor. The wind stirred the leaves, as if the forest itself held its breath.

  “You’re right,” he said softly. “I don’t understand. And it must’ve been hard for everyone.”

  He looked back up, gaze steady.

  “But she’s still our sister. We can’t abandon her over what happened that day. She had her reasons—whatever they were. When she finally realizes who I am... we need to give her the chance to speak. To explain.”

  Before Ryul could answer, Sa Gwan held up a fist and hissed, “Quiet.”

  The group froze.

  “Ten hellhounds,” Sa Gwan murmured, eyes scanning the mist ahead. “Low-level, but aggressive. We’ll handle them easy—if we stay sharp.”

  He turned to the three behind him.

  “Remember your training. Stay close. Don’t break formation. And don’t try to be a hero.”

  The clash came quickly.

  The hellhounds emerged from the mist like wraiths, low growls vibrating through the underbrush. Sa Gwan barked an order and stepped forward, blade flashing as the first two lunged.

  Blue moved with a calm fluidity that caught Ryul’s eye—there was no tension in his stance, no hesitation in his steps. He didn’t just dodge; he slipped through the attacks, weaving between snarling jaws and snapping claws with a grace that was all too familiar.

  Flowing Steel.

  Each motion bent the terrain to his rhythm, and each strike dropped a hellhound before it even realized it had been hit.

  Unseen above, perched on a thick branch, So-Yeon watched with cold eyes.

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  Her hood was down now, revealing violet strands drifting in the forest breeze. Her gaze never left Blue as he moved below her—light-footed, composed, unshaken.

  She muttered under her breath, the corner of her mouth twitching.

  "Tch... Just because Uncle taught you Grandfather’s footwork doesn’t make you Jiung.”

  The trees beyond the clearing trembled.

  A deep thoom echoed between the pines. Something massive was approaching—its steps deliberate, its weight undeniable.

  The orc emerged.

  Eight feet tall. Skin like hammered iron. Its jagged club dragged behind it, tearing through roots and stone. Its blood-red eyes locked onto the group.

  Sa Gwan didn’t hesitate. “Form up!”

  Ilho vanished into shadow, activating Phantom Veil mid-step. He blurred through the mist, his speed multiplying as he and Sa Gwan flanked the creature from either side.

  The orc swung. A wide, brutal arc that shattered the trunk of a tree behind them—but the strike found only air. Neither shadow was where it expected.

  Ryul darted forward the moment an opening appeared, blade gleaming as he aimed for the beast’s side. Blue moved in tandem, striking from the opposite angle.

  Clang.

  Their blades hit—then bounced off.

  Its hide was like tempered steel.

  Ryul gritted his teeth. “We can’t break through!”

  Blue's eyes narrowed. “Then we buy time—wear it down—!”

  Another swing. This one faster. Wild.

  “GET BACK!” Sa Gwan’s voice cut through the chaos.

  Blue turned just as the massive club whooshed past. He leaned back, narrowly dodging the blow—but not completely.

  The edge grazed his neck.

  A harsh sting. And then—snap.

  The pendant around his neck tore free, clattering to the forest floor.

  He froze. So did Ryul.

  So-Yeon’s eyes widened from her perch above.

  Without a word, she moved.

  The flash of movement was almost imperceptible.

  A plume of green and purple smoke burst within the clearing—and before anyone could react, So-Yeon stood behind the orc, sword drawn, unmoving.

  The orc blinked.

  Then its head slid free from its shoulders.

  It dropped to its knees.

  And with a thunderous thud, the headless body crashed forward—landing just inches from Blue and Ryul, who stood frozen, eyes wide.

  So-Yeon sheathed her blade in one fluid motion.

  No one had seen her move.

  No one had felt her arrive.

  And now, in stunned silence, they stared at the woman who had appeared like a ghost—and ended the battle in a single, ruthless strike.

  So-Yeon stepped over the fallen orc without a word, her boots crunching against loose pine needles. She halted just beside the creature’s severed head, then turned her gaze to the ground.

  The pendant lay still—dirt-streaked but intact.

  “You’re all lucky I was here,” she said coolly, brushing strands of violet hair from her face. “This wasn’t just some stray beast. That was a boss-level monster.”

  She knelt and picked up the pendant.

  “If things like this are slipping past the front lines,” she added darkly, “then the Martial Alliance clearly isn’t managing the gates as well as they claim.”

  But then she stopped.

  Her fingers closed around the pendant, and the words died on her lips.

  She stared at it—frozen.

  No expression. No breath. As if time itself had faltered in her presence.

  Blue stepped forward, wiping blood from his cheek. “Thank you for saving us,” he said calmly. “We could’ve handled it... would’ve taken longer, but still.”

  Ilho clapped dust off his tunic. “We would have killed it. Just not as stylish.”

  So-Yeon said nothing.

  Her eyes were locked on the pendant in her hand, as if it had reached into something far deeper than memory.

  Sa Gwan cleared his throat. “Umm… Commander. Should we continue forward?”

  She looked up slowly, her expression unreadable.

  “You and Ilho take my brother Ryul and meet with Mu Jang. He should be about two kilometers northwest of here.”

  There was a pause. Sa Gwan blinked.

  Ryul raised a brow. “Wait—”

  “It seems,” So-Yeon continued, turning to Blue, “this boy and I have much to discuss.”

  Sa Gwan looked between them, uncertain. “Ma’am, I… I can’t do that. Not without his permission.”

  She sneered. “I wasn’t asking.”

  A sudden edge entered the air.

  Sa Gwan’s stance shifted—subtle, ready.

  “Only if you promise his safety,” he said carefully. “Then I’ll take these two and do as you advised. Otherwise... I’m afraid we may have to cross swords here and now.”

  So-Yeon’s eyes narrowed.

  “His safety,” she said softly, “depends entirely on his answers.”

  Then she offered the ghost of a smile.

  “Don’t worry. I’ll bring him back in one piece.”

  Blue raised a brow. “Since you’re all talking about me, do I get a vote in this?”

  He never got an answer.

  In one motion, So-Yeon closed the distance and grabbed him by the collar. The wind stirred—then they were both gone.

  Just like that.

  Snatched into the forest’s shadow, with only a faint stir of leaves left in their wake.

  lho blinked. “...What just—”

  Sa Gwan exhaled and signaled them forward. “Don’t worry. We know Blue. He’ll be fine.”

  Ryul’s jaw clenched.

  “It’s not him I’m worried about.”

  The three turned and moved quickly toward the northwest, ready to inform Mu Jang of the orc—and the sudden disappearance of the boy who moved like a ghost and carried the weight of a forgotten name.