A low voice
drifted faintly from far away.
Rynel was walking somewhere inside a dream.
The world around him was blurred like fog,
and he couldn’t even feel the ground beneath his feet.
He didn’t know how long he walked.
Ahead, white smoke swelled and rose,
shaping itself into a tall tower.
Rynel reached out carefully.
Just as he was about to catch that smoke—
“Are you satisfied with my power?”
A strange voice, deep and low.
Rynel spun around, searching,
but there was nothing.
“···Who are you. What are you?”
“I am your past.”
“The one who was called Orta.”
“What are you talking about···
I’m just an ordinary human.”
Rynel clenched his teeth and rejected it.
But the voice continued, without the slightest tremor.
“Your mana.
Your magic.”
“The source of that power
is something you cannot remember···
it is mine. Orta’s.”
At the same time, beyond the fog,
a silhouette surfaced.
A woman in a white robe.
Rynel knew at once.
The “saint” he’d seen in his dreams before.
And on her wrist···
was the exact same red jeweled bracelet
Rynel was wearing now.
In that instant—
A red pulse spread outward from the bracelet.
“That woman
keeps interfering with me to the very end.”
“Don’t forget, Rynel.”
“The more you use power your body can’t bear,
the more I awaken.”
“In the end, you···
will call me completely.”
Rynel bared his teeth.
“You’re··· just a hallucination.”
Then the voice whispered again, quiet.
“The more you draw on my power···
the more I will consume you.”
“We’ll meet again soon.
Next time, you’ll be able to savor my power even deeper.”
And then—
In the fog,
a brief image flashed of the woman in white reaching out.
Warm light gathered at her fingertips,
wrapping something··· someone.
Rynel gasped and opened his eyes.
His whole body was soaked in sweat.
His head swam, his heart hammered wildly.
For a moment, the battle with the goblin elder from earlier that day
flickered through his mind.
Those moments when—without realizing it—
something aggressive, something combative, had surged up inside him.
“···Why··· did I become like that···”
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Rynel turned his head
and stared at the bracelet on his wrist.
Then he carefully laid a hand over it.
A red gemstone.
Even now,
it seemed to be sending a tiny pulse—
pulling at him.
‘···Was it me?’
‘Or was it him···’
A night of confusion,
where he could no longer tell what was truly “him.”
He slowly closed his eyes again.
He didn’t know how much time passed.
Outside the window, the first hint of dawn was seeping in.
After a short, steady breath,
Rynel sank once more into deep sleep.
◇
“Rynel~! How long are you going to stay knocked out?
The sun’s been up forever—seriously, you’re the demon king of oversleeping!”
A familiar voice.
Aira.
Rynel opened his eyes and slowly pushed himself upright.
His head was still foggy,
and the voice and images from the dream
lingered—faint, but present.
By the door, Aira was leaning with her arms crossed.
“You must’ve been really tired.
I tried waking you up once and you didn’t even twitch.”
Rynel pressed his forehead without a word.
The aftertaste of the dream clung to his fingertips.
“···I had a weird dream.”
He said quietly.
Aira tilted her head and dropped down beside the bed with a soft thump.
“A scary dream or something?”
Rynel shook his head.
“···Just…
a bad feeling. Like an omen.”
Aira smiled.
“A dream is just a dream.
You always overthink.”
But at the end of her words,
something caught.
Her lips were smiling,
but her eyes wavered in a strange way.
Rynel didn’t say anything—
he only looked again at the red bracelet on his wrist.
Then, from beyond the open door, another voice came.
“If you’re done getting ready, come out.
Our job in this village is over. We need to move to the next one.”
Monero.
Rynel lifted his head, as if he hadn’t understood.
“···But we didn’t wipe out the goblins.”
Monero gave a bitter smile.
“Yeah, about that—
the count canceled our contract.”
“······What?”
“Said he found someone ‘more suitable’ to handle it himself, or whatever.
He’ll pay us a fair cut, and that’s the end of it.”
Aira added with a disappointed look.
“Just when it was getting fun···
What a lame way to end it. Total mood killer.”
Rynel stepped forward.
“But there’s still—”
Monero raised both hands, stopping him.
“Rynel. Please.
If there’s no client, what right do we have to keep going?”
Rynel pressed his lips together.
Monero wasn’t wrong.
◇
After packing up, Rynel’s group left the inn
and headed for the guild.
Familiar faces were already waiting there.
“Huh?”
Silvermoon Shield.
Kruster spotted Rynel first
and lifted a hand with a bright greeting.
“Rynel.
Thank you—truly—for saving Nenya that day.”
Rynel clasped his hand quietly.
“I’m glad she made it.”
Short. Plain.
But Kruster didn’t let go right away.
Lowering his voice slightly, he asked,
“I won’t ask what happened inside that day, but···”
He dipped his gaze once, then looked back at Rynel.
“Nenya seems··· different. Haha.”
Rynel inhaled shortly.
“···Does she?”
“Yes. She doesn’t say anything to us, but···
sometimes she just stares off, like she’s thinking about something.”
Kruster turned his head and glanced back
at Nenya.
She stood quietly,
hands clenched tight, head half lowered.
When her eyes met Rynel’s,
her lips moved like she was about to speak—
but she lowered her gaze instead, silent.
Monero cut in between them.
“Alright, alright. Time to move.”
Kruster smiled as if regretful.
He released Rynel’s hand slowly.
“It was a short time, but we’ll miss it.
Next time, I hope we can take a proper contract together.”
Beside him, Aira threw a hand up high.
“Then we’re going to meet again~ Promise!”
The Silvermoon Shield members
returned bright farewells.
But at the very end of those quick goodbyes,
only Nenya hesitated—about to say something, then swallowing it, head bowed.
Rynel didn’t ask.
He only carved that small movement
deep into his chest.
◇
About a week after the incident.
Deep night, beyond the count’s castle.
Soft footsteps echoed
over cold stone.
Step, step.
Red hair brushed the moonlight,
and in both hands, two red gemstones gleamed quietly.
Serian.
Her face still held
no trace of emotion.
Behind her,
a silhouette that looked human—
and yet clearly wasn’t—followed like a shadow.
Argas.
A red pulse spread softly around his feet.
Argas slowly accepted one of the gemstones
from Serian’s hand.
“Mmm··· this flow, this texture···
It’s definitely different from the previous ones.”
He lifted the red gem slowly
above his palm.
In that instant, from the center of the gem,
mana leapt like a thin line—
a flash that looked like it scratched the air itself.
Bzzzt!
The mana wavered, unstable,
and where the air briefly warped,
a twisted shape flickered through.
“Purity’s still lacking.
But the reaction··· isn’t bad.”
He stared at the distorted crack,
genuinely intrigued.
“So the gem amplifies my wavelength—
and creates a temporary裂, too.”
Then a door opened quietly,
and the count hurried inside.
The moment he saw who was there,
he dropped to his knees.
“Lord Argas···!”
“To be granted an audience this close again··· it is an honor···!”
He bowed so low his forehead nearly hit the floor,
fervor spilling from his entire body.
Barely breathing, he rushed to report.
“Additional personnel and equipment will be prepared at once.”
“We will take every precaution to avoid giving offense.”
Argas glanced at him,
then looked away.
The count lifted his head carefully and continued.
“The deposit of the red gemstones you sought has been confirmed.
Deep beneath the abandoned mine.”
“The area has already been designated restricted.”
“Outside eyes have been completely shut out.”
Then a short voice rang out.
“Serian.”
The girl nodded, expressionless.
◇
Before dawn.
Silvermoon Shield
was heading for the abandoned mine again.
“You should’ve told us sooner, Nenya!”
The ranger Namia complained, sounding frustrated.
“If that kind of thing comes out of there, it has value.
Even without a contract, let’s take a few.”
From behind, the priest Midas added,
“That power will help improve our skills.
It’s rare enough to be worth researching, too.”
Kruster finished the thought.
“And you said Rynel already wiped out the goblins, right?
It shouldn’t be that dangerous.”
Nenya, who’d tried to stop them,
murmured in a voice that kept shrinking.
“···That’s not what I meant.
I didn’t mean we could just go back···”
But their steps
didn’t stop.
Near the mine entrance—
When they arrived,
someone was already going in.
A red-haired girl.
Without a word, she walked into the mine alone—
long strides, unhesitating.
Silvermoon Shield watched her
from a distance.
“···Who is that kid?”
They shared the same question,
looking at one another.
And without anyone needing to say it,
they followed after her.
◇
Silvermoon Shield advanced,
slow but careful.
“Still quiet···”
Namia said, scanning.
“We’re getting close to the spot Nenya mentioned.”
Kruster pointed ahead.
After walking for a while,
a space appeared where faint light leaked out.
That place.
The chamber where Nenya had fallen last time.
“Over there.”
Nenya stopped and pointed.
That was when—
Someone inside turned slowly.
“The kid who went in before us···?”
Namia narrowed her eyes.
In the light stood
the red-haired girl.
A bloodless face.
Pale skin.
Blank eyes that swept over them, slow and flat.
“Hey··· kid. Did you come alone?”
Namia asked carefully.
“Are you hurt anywhere?”
The girl didn’t part her lips.
She only took one quiet step forward.
In that instant,
Nenya stopped breathing.
The red gem in the girl’s hand.
The pulse coming off it—
only Nenya, a mage, could catch it clearly.
Mana that was grotesque, wrong in every way.
Cold ran down her spine.
“···We have to leave. Right now. We have to leave—!”
Nenya tried to turn, trembling—
But then.
KWAANG!!
From the shadows, something huge
dropped through the air.
“AAAH!!”
The ground shook,
and a red current of mana burst outward.
Midas didn’t even have time to react—
his chest was pierced, and he collapsed.
“Midas!!”
Kruster shouted.
But he, too, was struck—
his thigh torn open, thrown back.
Namia snapped her bow up—
but something faster
carved deep into her side.
A spray of blood.
A scream.
Friends dropping one by one.
“No!!”
Nenya’s scream.
Even then, Kruster clenched his teeth,
on one knee, forcing the words out—
“Run··· Nenya···
Now···!”
Nenya froze,
staring around.
Blood.
Blood everywhere.
Hot drops slid down her cheek,
then fell—one by one—onto her clothes, her feet.
Her breath caught,
her legs shook.
“···Move!”
That final shout
stabbed into her ears.
Thunk.
A rigid foot moved.
Then she kicked off the ground with both legs
and ran—turning back into the dark passage.
Gasping,
staggering,
she sprinted through the mine’s darkness.
Shoes smeared with blood.
Hair a tangled mess.
Fingertips trembling.
But nothing
could stop her legs.
“First I have to get out···
and then I have to tell them···”
With a sobbing breath,
Nenya tore through the dark—
farther and farther away.
◇
“Is it really fine to let that one go?”
A slow, calm voice.
Beside the red-haired girl,
a figure stepped out of the shadows.
Argas.
Arms crossed,
he watched Nenya’s retreating back.
Serian nodded, expressionless.
“We need a tool
to spread the rumor.”
Argas looked at the running figure
and muttered with a faint sneer.
“Looks like an interesting play is about to begin.”
