Round clouds drifted across the night sky like slow-moving islands, their curves catching the faint glow of the ash-colored moon. They rolled gently above the roofs and treetops, softening the darkness and giving the sky above Bion City a quiet, dreamlike beauty.

Leaves spun, jolting and moving from the trembling branches of trees planted at the corners of the buildings closer to the walls of the barracks.

A clicking sound echoed as figures moved, climbing and entering through the windows of the buildings long abandoned by their owners.

Soldiers walked, scanning the street that stretched long to the alley leading to the barracks, then walked back through the iron gate and stopped at the benches placed closer to the pillars inside the barracks.

The brown-skinned young guy holding the blue handkerchief turned to the fair young guy, chuckling.

"This city has been quiet for quite a while, no fights, no bandits, and no crime for four months," he said, using the tip of his boot to draw a circular arc on the slightly dusty ground.

The fair guy turned and smiled, then jolted from the seat and stretched himself, staring at the cluster of round clouds drifting in the sky.

"Okay, so you're part of those who seek to destroy this place, abi?" the fair guy said, tilting his gaze to the brown-skinned guy, frowning.

The brown-skinned guy paused the arc mid-center, turned his shocked gaze toward the fair guy.

"Why do you always take things differently?" he said, standing from the seat and staring at the fair guy, still having a shocked expression.

"If you keep on doing that, it'd be hard for me to tell you what I have in my mind," he said, moving past the fair guy in anger and exiting the barracks and stopping at the center of the road at the front of the barracks wall.

A black polythene bag flew high, floating past the guys now moving toward the gate and entering the barracks. It flowed, moving from buildings, light poles, and stopped at the edge of the dormitory.

As the moon's light shone on the building, most of the windows remained closed, but at the center of the windows at the center of the fourth floor, wind dashed into the room.

Blue curtains flopped, moving like waves inside the open window. Purple light glowed in the room, brightening so hard it overshadowed the darkness in the room.

In the purple light, Kai trembled, shaking and sweating profusely. He kept on slamming his hand on the metal edges of the bed, groaning while his blue and red eyes remained open wide, omitting the purple glow from it.

In his dream, he stood in the midst of countless shadows moving to and fro from a black sword shimmering with an obsidian glow spreading like fire.

The shadows moved, merging themselves and letting the glow of the sword increase.

Kai stood there, tilting his shocked expression at the sword and the shadows stretching their limbs at him, screaming as if calling on him for help.

Chorus of voices screamed, shouting one name over and over as Kai moved two steps forward toward the sword.

A sudden rift of air dashed into the dark environment when Kai added the third step, silencing the screams and replacing it with wing-flapping sounds. At the top of the sword, a black bird stood there, hovering and staring at Kai and nodding while crying.

Suddenly, an invisible force surged into Kai, pulling him toward the sword and the bird. For countless times, Kai resisted, yet he couldn't stop himself from moving.

Reaching two feet away from the sword, the screams echoed, striking hard in Kai's ears and letting blood seep out of his eyes and nose.

When Kai reached the sword, his right arm stretched forward without his will, moving toward the obsidian glow that gave way and letting the brown handle of the sword show.

In reality, Kai's bed wet, dripping on the floor and turning his floor into a small pond, but in his dream, the blood stopped flowing, turning into a black liquid seeping out and turning his eyes black.

…

Rustling sound stirred on the thick branches of trees spreading and stretching long and serving as a shade for the two young men, a young lady, and an old lady sitting on a diamond chair.

The old lady kept on flipping the pages of a huge black book that had names, ages, and pictures of people.

Upon every flip of the page, the three people standing and staring exchanged confused glances.

'Why call us to join him, did she tell him something, or she's about to?' Jinx thought, squeezing her eyes as she kept her gaze fixed on Oin.

After thirty minutes of silence, the woman stopped flipping the page, moved her finger on a single name, and slowly raised her head, staring deep into Oin's eyes.

"This is the person I've met with the name you seek for," the priestess said, her voice sounding in both pain and worry, then extended the book to the young man with brown hair.

The priestess tilted her gaze to the moon's direction, closed her eyes, nodding sorrowfully.

Oin and Jinx exchanged glances, then moved toward the woman who seemed to be crying inwardly.

"Please, where can we find him?" Jinx said, calmly placing her left arm at the back of the old woman, but removed her hand swiftly when the woman turned a wild gaze to her and began moving forward.

All three of the young people stood there confused at the woman's action and questioning themselves.

"Why that gaze?" Jinx said, spreading her arms and staring at the young men with a confused expression.

Before they could answer, the old woman turned a sharp gaze at them. "What are you waiting for?" she said, her voice echoing with urgency and tension.

Chills surged into their spine, forcing them to follow the woman.

For another thirty minutes, they walked under the night sky, moving from one building to another, stopping when the woman did, and continuing only when she continued.

Huge crows crossed them as they reached a three-way junction, crying and flapping their wings while attacking them. The old woman turned, stretched her walking stick, and shoved the crows away, allowing the three people following her to follow her safely without any harm.

Though the old woman saw them to be weak, deep down, they knew if not for their disguise, they would have used a single second to slam the crows down.

Few moments after taking the left dusty and tree-filled road, they stopped at a raised sand with a cross made of sticks pierced into one side of the raised sand.

"What is this?" Jinx said, her voice echoing in a whisper as she pulled the tip of Oin's shirt. But the moment Oin turned and opened his mouth, he stopped, spotting the old woman standing and placing her palms together, honoring the raised ground.

'Is that a grave?' Jinx thought, opening her mouth and opening her eyes wide.

The old woman closed her eyes, whispered into her palms, and stretched her arms on the raised sand, then turned to the three people standing in shock.

"This is the grave of the wife of Fenlore," the old woman said, cracking her eyes open and turning her gaze toward a building standing in the midst of weeds.

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