The battlefield had fallen silent.

No more screams, no more roars only the wind sighing through the broken roofs of Tashi village.

Ash floated like snow. The moonlight dripped over splintered fences, scorched soil, and the scent of burnt void ichor that refused to fade. The thousand-strong swarm of Voidborn now lay scattered across the plains, their black shells turning to dust under the touch of dawn.

Ceyla wiped her blade clean, breath ragged. Her lightning had burned trails through the darkness, and now her arms trembled from exhaustion. She turned to see Andromeda and Matthew among the villagers helping them, checking the wounded, doing everything a Taishin wasn't trained for, but had to do.

Andromeda was talking too much, as usual.

"And here I thought I'd just come for sightseeing," he said, grinning faintly as he helped a man bandage his arm. "Next time, maybe we'll book a spa instead of a voidborn raid."

One of the villagers gave a weak laugh. Another, bleeding from the shoulder, mumbled, "You sure talk a lot for someone who almost got eaten."

Andromeda put a hand to his chest, pretending to be wounded. "Hey now, I was the bait. A very handsome bait, if I might add."

Matthew groaned beside him, carrying a crate of herbs from the nearby hut. "Less talking, more helping, Ban."

"You sound like my dad," Andromeda muttered.

"That's because you act like a kid," Matthew shot back, deadpan.

Andromeda sighed dramatically. "Ah, father issues and battle scars. What a combo."

Ceyla couldn't help it, a tired laugh slipped out. For a moment, the weight on her chest eased.

Then she saw him Khael, standing in the middle of the ruined field, his dragon-scale aura dimming to a faint ember. Beside him knelt Juno, clutching his bleeding arm, his expression grim and unreadable.

Ceyla walked over, slow and cautious. "Is he… alright?" she asked softly.

Khael nodded once. "He's alive. That's enough for now."

Juno looked up, eyes still fierce despite the blood on his face. "They said they're looking for him — for Master Vince."

Ceyla's brows furrowed. "Then they're not done."

"Neither are we," Khael said quietly. He glanced toward the forest, where the twins had vanished. "Those two… they weren't fighting to win. They were testing us."

Ceyla shivered. "Testing…? For what?"

"For whoever they serve," Khael replied. "And they were holding back. I could feel it."

Robi, the crimson-haired captain of Tashi, his armor cracked and blood-stained limped toward them, resting his greatsword against his shoulder. "You kids fight damn well," he said, voice rough but proud. "Haven't seen Taishin this sharp in years. You saved our village… for now."

Khael looked at him and smiled faintly. "We only did what we could."

Robi chuckled. "'What we could,' he says." He gestured around, the battered villagers, the dying embers of voidborn dust. "You call this 'what we could'? Boy, you've done more than any army would've managed. You've earned our thanks."

A murmur of agreement swept through the villagers tired, trembling, but alive.

Some even bowed. Some wept quietly.

The fear that had haunted them for years, the endless attacks of the Voidborn had finally been broken, even if just for a night.

Andromeda wiped the sweat from his forehead, glancing at the rising sun. "Not bad, huh? Saved a village before breakfast. I'd call that a win."

Matthew rolled his eyes. "You're unbelievable."

"That's what my ex said too," Andromeda muttered under his breath.

Nobody laughed this time but that was fine. The silence was comforting enough.

Ceyla turned to Khael, who stood quietly, his gaze fixed on the treeline where Alaric and Selene had vanished. His expression wasn't one of triumph. It was something heavier — regret, maybe even guilt.

"Khael," she said softly. "What's wrong?"

He didn't answer right away. The wind tugged at his cloak as he whispered, almost to himself:

"The way she looked at me… Selene. It wasn't hatred. It was fear."

Juno, sitting nearby, clenched his fists. "Fear of what?"

Khael's crimson eyes flickered. "Of whoever's controlling them. Or whatever's behind all this."

The group fell silent.

From the distance, the bells of Tashi temple began to ring slow, hollow notes that marked both mourning and thanks. The sound carried over the plains, through smoke and silence, echoing in every broken wall.

Robi sighed deeply. "You all should rest. We'll handle the dead and the rebuilding. You've done enough for one day."

Juno stood, ignoring his wounds. "No… we're not done. Not until we find Master Vince."

Robi smiled faintly. "That's the kind of stubbornness this world needs."

As the sun finally rose over the Rokuen Plains, its light touched the ruined village glinting off shattered swords, torn banners, and the faint shimmer of Shinrei dust in the air.

Ceyla looked at the horizon, whispering, "The storm hasn't ended… it's just quiet for now."

Khael closed his eyes. "Then we'll be ready when it returns."

And for a moment, amid the ruin, the young Taishin stood tall not just as warriors, but as protectors of a world that had already begun to whisper their names.

Meanwhile The forest was still.

Only the faint rustle of leaves broke the silence as Alaric and Selene staggered through the undergrowth, their bodies bloodied, their breaths uneven, their pride in tatters.

Selene's hand trembled as she pressed it against her abdomen. Even though her wounds

had closed, the dull ache of Shinrei backlash lingered.

Her hair, once immaculate, was now streaked with blood and soot.

"We failed again," she whispered, her voice hollow.

Alaric clenched his jaw, his golden eyes flickering like dying embers. "Damn it… he was stronger than I thought. That Khael, the Dragon Knight, he's not someone to take lightly."

Selene looked down, her expression unreadable. "What should we do now?"

Before Alaric could respond, a voice calm, sharp, and impossibly close slid into their ears.

"You don't have to think too hard about that."

Both twins froze.

The air around them tightened.

From behind the trees, a silhouette emerged elegant posture, white gloves faintly glowing under the moonlight, orange hair burning like a halo of flame in the darkness.

K.

The Tactician of the Hollow Nine.

He walked toward them, the crunch of leaves beneath his boots slow and deliberate, as if each step was a verdict being passed.

"I'm disappointed, twins."

Selene immediately knelt, trembling. "K… we tried. We fought them…"

"Fought?" K's tone was soft, almost polite, but the cold in his eyes silenced her. "You call that fighting? I sent you to retrieve the remnants holding by the Taishin master — Vince — and instead you ran away like frightened children."

Alaric gritted his teeth. "You think we didn't try?! That man— that monster— he took my arm, my pride, everything! You weren't there! You don't understand what fighting him was like!"

K stopped in front of him.

He didn't speak.

He simply raised a single gloved finger pressing it lightly against Alaric's chest.

In that instant, the ground cracked beneath Alaric's feet.

A pulse of invisible Shinrei rippled through his body, throwing him backward. He slammed into a tree trunk, gasping as the air left his lungs.

Selene screamed, "Stop it! Please, K— he's hurt!"

K turned his gaze to her.

"You think I care about hurt? The Hollow Nine does not bleed for failure. We consume it. Learn from it. Or you'll be replaced."

His words hung like frost in the air.

Selene's eyes burned with barely contained rage, but her voice shook. "Then tell us what to do. If you're so certain, tell us what you want."

K smiled faintly. It wasn't warmth, it was the smile of someone who'd already calculated every outcome.

"What I want, dear Selene, is Vince's corpse… or his head. Preferably the latter."

Alaric, still panting, looked up from where he'd fallen. "You think we didn't try? We almost had him!"

K tilted his head slightly. "Almost isn't enough. 'Almost' doesn't change the game. And while you're out there almost succeeding, the Dragon Knight moves his piece forward."

He turned, his coat brushing against the grass as he began to walk away.

But before fading into the shadows, K paused, just long enough to let his next words sink into them like a curse.

"You failed your assignment. But I'll give you one last chance."

The twins looked up.

K's orange hair gleamed like wildfire as he said, almost lazily,

"Find Vince. Bring me the shard he carries… before Lucere loses his patience."

And with that, he vanished, his presence melting into the forest as if he'd never been there at all.

The silence returned.

Only the soft hum of dying Shinrei lingered, like the whisper of a storm that hadn't truly passed.

Selene fell to her knees, trembling. "He's going to kill us if we fail again."

Alaric's hand clenched into a fist. His eyes glowed faintly gold, the hatred in them burning anew.

"Then we won't fail again," he said through gritted teeth.

"Next time… Vince, the Dragon Knight, all of them, they die."

Selene nodded weakly, though her gaze drifted to the horizon, where she could still feel the faint warmth of Khael's Shinrei.

And deep in her heart… she wasn't sure who she truly feared more

K.

Or the Dragon Knight who pitied her.

To be continue

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