Night draped Gyeongwol in silence, but the city did not sleep.
From the rooftops, Hyunjae saw the lanterns of the Fourth District burn like fireflies, scattered among streets that seemed to writhe with whispers. The air itself felt heavier here, as if thickened by something unseen. Even the moon, pale and thin above, looked sickly.
"Beyond this wall," Jiseok said, his blind eyes turned toward the east, "lies the Forgotten Quarter. A place abandoned after plague swept through thirty years ago. The city sealed it off. But the Serpent Claw thrives where the living will not tread."
Hyunjae tightened his grip on his sword. The blade's crimson veins pulsed faintly, as if eager.
Seoyeon's crimson ribbons fluttered at her side. She frowned. "You've led us to a graveyard."
"A graveyard," Jiseok murmured, "is simply a battlefield with patient corpses."
The wall before them was cracked and overgrown with vines, but the gate was barred with iron chains thicker than Hyunjae's arm.
Yet the chains had been broken—from inside.
The ground bore deep grooves, as though something massive had clawed its way out. The earth itself seemed bruised, veins of black qi spreading from the gate like the roots of a poisoned tree.
Seoyeon inhaled sharply. "This stench… it's not poison. It's corrupted qi."
Hyunjae's skin crawled. His sword pulsed faster, as though resonating with the corruption. The whispers brushed his mind again.
Deeper. Go deeper. Feed.
He clenched his jaw and ignored it.
Inside the Forgotten Quarter, silence reigned.
Houses stood hollow, their roofs caved, their doors ajar. Empty windows stared like dead eyes. Rats scurried through piles of rotted grain and collapsed furniture. The air was thick with mold, dust, and something darker—an oily essence that clung to their lungs.
And then they heard it.
A low rasp. Like claws dragging across stone.
Seoyeon's ribbons snapped taut in her hands. Jiseok drew his sword with a whispering hiss. Hyunjae raised his own, the crimson glow faint but eager.
From the darkness of a ruined street, it came.
The shadow beast was no man.
Its body was long and twisted, its limbs too many, sprouting at unnatural angles. Its flesh was not flesh, but roiling black qi given shape, shifting and warping as it moved. Its face—or what could be called a face—was a hollow mask of bone, with no eyes, only a gaping maw lined with teeth that dripped liquid shadow.
When it breathed, the lanterns flickered.
When it howled, the walls cracked.
The sound pierced Hyunjae's skull, resonating with the whispers in his blade until he staggered. His vision blurred—shadows writhed at the edges, reaching for him.
"Hyunjae!" Seoyeon's voice snapped him back. She darted forward, ribbons unfurling. They wrapped around the beast's limb, tightening like a vice, and pulled.
But the beast did not bleed. The ribbons cut only smoke, and in an instant the creature twisted, ripping itself free, reforming where it was torn.
Jiseok stepped forward. "Moonlight Echo!"
His blade flashed once, twice, seven times in a single breath. Silver arcs carved through the beast's body. For a heartbeat, its form split apart—then knit back together, the wounds closing as though mocking him.
"This is no man to kill," Jiseok muttered, sweat beading on his brow.
The beast lunged.
Hyunjae barely raised his sword in time. The creature's claws slammed against the crimson steel, the impact rattling his bones. Black qi hissed against red veins, and for a terrifying moment, the blade seemed to drink.
The whispers roared. Yes. Feed. This is ours.
Hyunjae's arms moved without thought. His blade carved a line of light through the beast's chest. This time, the strike did not close—the crimson aura burned against the shadow, searing it apart.
The beast screamed, its form unraveling like smoke caught in wind.
Seoyeon stared at Hyunjae's sword. "Your blade… it hurts it."
Hyunjae staggered back, panting. His hand trembled around the hilt. The crimson veins on the blade pulsed wildly, bright as fire, almost joyous.
Jiseok's blind eyes turned toward him. His voice was grim.
"That is why they call you Chosen. Not because of who you are—but because of what that sword can do. Against shadow, it is not just a weapon. It is a key."
The last remnants of the beast dissolved into the night, leaving only silence and the taste of ash in their throats.
But Hyunjae knew silence would not last. For every beast slain, there would be another.
And with each, the blade whispered louder.