She took a deep breath before answering.

  “My father…

  His name was Irix.

  Twenty years ago, he fought alongside the ones who started the war—the people who tried to take over the world. He worked directly under Ryn Hale, the one who planned everything.”

  She paused.

  “Kael… touch the blade of my sword.”

  “What?” Kael asked, confused.

  “Do as I say.”

  He hesitated, then finally reached out.

  The blade was black, its surface dull and lightless. The handle was tightly wrapped in old bandages.

  The moment Kael’s fingers touched the blade, mana surged out of his body—dragged forcefully into the sword.

  “—!”

  Kael yanked his hand back, breathing hard.

  Aeris continued calmly.

  “This blade was given to my father by Ryn Hale. My father was born with anti-magic. Because of that, the sword carries anti-magic properties as well. Dense mana constantly surrounds it—mana I can channel. That’s why I can cut through spells.”

  She lowered the sword slightly.

  “When the war began, my father eventually realized he was on the wrong side. He betrayed them and helped the government instead. And he truly did.”

  “But when the war ended… he couldn’t escape what he had done.”

  Her fingers clenched.

  “The people he killed. The innocent ones. The memories never left him. And the villagers never forgave him either.”

  “When I was born… and everyone realized I couldn’t see, they said it was my father’s karma. That I was paying for his sins.”

  “My father believed it too.”

  “For a long time… only my mother didn’t.”

  Her voice wavered—just slightly.

  “But when I was eight… she died. An illness.”

  “After that, my father was alone.”

  She fell silent.

  “One morning… I woke up, and this sword was lying beside me.

  There was a note.”

  Aeris lifted her head.

  “It said—”

  *Aeris,*

  If you’re reading this, it means I had to leave before saying goodbye properly. I’m sorry for that. I was never good at goodbyes.

  I know the world hasn’t been kind to you. And I know people have said cruel things—about me, about you, about things we never chose. Don’t listen to them. None of that was your fault. Not even a little.

  You are not a punishment. You are not a burden. You are the best thing that ever came into my life.

  This sword… it was given to me by a friend, but it belongs to you now. I’ve placed part of myself inside it—not because you need protecting… but because I know you will walk a dangerous path. Let it remind you that you were never alone. Even when you feel like you are.

  I won’t always be there to guide you. And that hurts me more than anything. But I believe in you. More than I ever believed in myself.

  Live, Aeris. Laugh when you can. Be angry when you must. And when the world feels too heavy, remember—your father was proud of you from the very beginning.

  I’ll be watching over you. Always.

  —Dad

  Aeris’s eyes filled with tears.

  “Now,” she continued, her voice steady despite it all,

  “my only goal in life is to clear my father’s name.”

  Silence followed.

  Kael watched as her expression settled back into its usual calm—controlled, guarded.

  “…Aeris,” he said quietly.

  She didn’t respond.

  Kael looked down at the fire, then back at her.

  “That letter,” he continued,

  “there’s something in it you keep stepping around.”

  Her grip on the sword tightened.

  “It doesn’t sound like an order,” Kael said.

  “It sounds like a wish.”

  Silence.

  “He didn’t tell you to fight,” Kael went on.

  “He didn’t tell you to prove anything.”

  Aeris’s brow furrowed slightly.

  “He told you to live.”

  The words lingered in the cave.

  “To laugh,” Kael added.

  “To be angry. To feel things.”

  He didn’t look at her eyes when he spoke again.

  “…You’re carrying his past,” he said.

  “But you don’t leave much room for anything else.”

  For a moment, Aeris didn’t move.

  “…You think I don’t understand that?” she asked quietly.

  “I think you do,” Kael replied.

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  “But understanding something doesn’t mean you let yourself act on it.”

  The fire cracked softly.

  “You don’t stop,” he continued.

  “You don’t slow down.”

  “And you don’t react to things that don’t matter to the mission.”

  Aeris exhaled through her nose.

  “…And if I did?” she asked.

  Kael didn’t answer right away.

  “Then,” he said carefully,

  “you’d have to listen to things you’ve been keeping quiet by moving forward.”

  Her fingers loosened—only slightly.

  The cave stayed quiet.

  “…My father,” she said after a moment,

  “never stopped either.”

  Kael shook his head.

  “No,” he said.

  “But he still wrote that.”

  That was all.

  Aeris stared at the fire, watching the flames shift and bend.

  “…Words are easy,” she said.

  She adjusted her grip on the sword—precise, familiar.

  Kael didn’t argue.

  “Still,” he said quietly,

  “he chose those words.”

  Silence stretched.

  Then—

  “…I don’t know where that fits,” Aeris said at last.

  Not confusion.

  Not surrender.

  Just friction.

  Kael allowed a faint smile.

  “Then don’t force it,” he said.

  “Just don’t ignore it either.”

  She tilted her head slightly.

  “…You talk too much.”

  Kael blinked.

  “…I’ll take that as improvement.”

  For the briefest moment, the tension in her mouth eased.

  Not a smile.

  But not nothing.

  “Hey—Kael, Aeris. Are you both okay?”

  Zeph’s voice echoed inside their ears.

  Kael flinched slightly before relaxing.

  “Oh—right,” he muttered. “I forgot about this thing Kaji gave us.”

  “Yes,” Kael replied. “We’re safe. We’ve taken shelter inside a cave.”

  Before he could say more, Kany’s voice cut in.

  “We scanned the left side of the area,” he said.

  “Didn’t find anything unusual. Just a few monsters.”

  “How’s it going on your side?” Kany asked.

  Kael took a breath.

  “We investigated our area,” he said. “There are a lot more monsters here. We’re about a kilometer deep into the forest—roughly five hundred meters ahead from where we split up.”

  “We took down several,” he added,

  “but their numbers keep increasing. From what we can tell, we might be getting close to where they’re coming from.”

  There was a brief pause.

  “…What about Aeris?” Zeph asked.

  “You mentioned shelter—did something happen?”

  “She has a fever,” Kael replied.

  “That’s why we’re resting in a cave right now.”

  “But she’s stable,” he added quickly.

  “If nothing goes wrong, she should recover by morning.”

  “So what’s the plan?” Kany asked.

  “If everything goes well,” Kael said,

  “we’ll head back to where we left off. I’ll signal you with smoke so you can track our position. For now, get some rest.”

  “Roger that, Sir Kael,” Kany replied lightly.

  “One more thing,” Zeph said.

  Kael frowned. “What is it?”

  “I’ve been trying to contact Sir Kaji,” Zeph said.

  “But it’s like he’s not responding at all.”

  That’s strange, Kael thought.

  “It might be because of the dense mana near the stronghold,” Kael said after a moment.

  “He did tell us he was going to explore it.”

  “…Alright,” Zeph replied.

  “See you guys tomorrow.”

  The connection was cut off.

  The cave fell silent once more.

  They slept through the night.

  In the morning, Kael woke as a thin beam of sunlight slipped through a crack in the cave’s ceiling, landing directly on his eyes. He blinked and turned his face away, then slowly sat up.

  The fire had long since died out.

  He stood and walked toward Aeris.

  She was still lying against the stone wall, her breathing steady.

  Kael knelt beside her and shook her shoulder lightly.

  “Hey,” he said quietly. “Wake up. We need to leave.”

  Aeris stirred, then opened her eyes.

  Kael stood and moved toward the dead bear. He cut away a small portion of meat and returned to the fire pit.

  “How are you feeling now?” he asked as he worked.

  “I’m better,” Aeris replied.

  “The fever is gone.”

  Kael nodded. He reignited the fire and placed the meat over it.

  “So… did you sleep well?” he asked.

  “Yes,” she said. “I slept fine.”

  Silence followed.

  The fire crackled softly as the meat began to cook. Outside, the forest remained quiet—too quiet.

  Then—

  Something caught Kael’s eye.

  A faint glimmer, barely visible, reflected the sunlight deep inside the cave. It wasn’t firelight. It didn’t move.

  Kael frowned and stood, stepping closer.

  As his eyes adjusted, the shape became clearer.

  A beast.

  The same kind they had been fighting.

  Its body lay unnaturally still, its surface faintly shimmering where the light touched it.

  Kael’s breath slowed.

  Why is it here?

  His senses sharpened instantly.

  He scanned the cave.

  That was when he noticed it.

  The hole.

  A narrow opening at the back of the cave, descending into darkness. The same hole the bear had burst from the night before.

  The darkness beyond it felt… wrong.

  Too deep.

  Too quiet.

  Kael straightened slowly.

  “Aeris,” he said quietly.

  She was already on her feet.

  “There’s something here,” Kael continued. “A beast. Same type as the others. It’s been here the whole time.”

  He glanced toward the back of the cave.

  “And that hole… it goes deeper than it should.”

  Aeris stepped closer, her hand resting on the hilt of her sword.

  “I can sense something,” she said after a moment.

  “It’s faint… but it hasn’t moved.”

  Kael frowned.

  “Alive?” he asked.

  “I don’t know,” Aeris replied.

  “But it’s not empty either.”

  The cave felt colder suddenly.

  Not from wind.

  From stillness.

  Kael took a slow breath.

  “We should check it,” he said.

  “If we leave it like this, we won’t know what we’re walking away from.”

  Aeris nodded once.

  “Stay close,” she said.

  They moved toward the opening.

  The light from the cave entrance didn’t reach far inside. Shadows swallowed the walls almost immediately, and every step echoed longer than it should have.

  Behind them, the fire crackled once—

  then fell silent.

  The darkness ahead did not react.

  It simply waited to be entered.