The ground groaned as more Guardians rose from the sea of broken masks.
Ten.
Twenty.
Thirty.
Each was a porcelain knight, towering and jagged, every mask-face cracked to reveal reflections of Yurin Crimson. Their chorus shook the crimson sky, a single word echoing again and again:
"Architect."
Damien Holt's flames flared higher, but his voice was raw. "I don't care what they're calling you—if you've got answers, Crimson, now's the time!"
Evelyn Blackthorn's chains coiled tighter around her arms. Her expression was sharp, but her eyes betrayed unease. "You wanted to play mysterious? Fine. But if you keep holding out on us now, I swear I'll wrap these chains around your throat instead of theirs."
Clara Winslow's hands trembled as she clutched her papers, ink dripping like blood. "…If they're made of people—humans twisted into this—then every time we fight…"
"We kill them," Yurin finished calmly. His smile was faint, almost polite. "Congratulations. You're catching on."
The Guardians stepped forward in unison, their glass-blades raised. The air itself felt heavier, each whispering voice scraping against their minds.
Damien roared, charging headlong. His fists blazed brighter than ever, fire echoing like a battlefield. Each punch landed like a cannon, scattering fragments of porcelain—but the Guardians kept reforming.
"They don't stay down!" he yelled.
Evelyn's chains lashed out, wrapping one Guardian's blade and yanking it off balance. She vaulted onto its chest, stabbing a dagger between its cracks. "They're not meant to!"
Clara slammed her bloodied palm against a page, scrawling desperately: "Collapse."
The word seared the air, and the ground beneath three Guardians gave way, dragging them into a pit of shards.
But more emerged to take their place.
The whispers grew louder.
"Architect. Architect. Architect."
Damien struck another down, fire consuming its porcelain. He spun on Yurin, fury in his eyes.
"Why do they all look at you?! What the hell are you hiding?!"
Yurin's smirk didn't falter, even as another Guardian's blade nearly cleaved his head. He ducked casually, whispering, "Strip."
The Guardian froze, its mask shattering. A human face appeared, eyes wide with terror. Yurin didn't hesitate. He let the truth dissolve it into ash.
The others froze at the cold efficiency.
Clara's voice broke. "You didn't even try to save him…"
Yurin's gaze lingered on the ashes drifting away. His smile was unsettlingly serene.
"Not everyone wants to be unmasked."
Evelyn dropped from her Guardian kill, chains retracting with a snap. She glared at Yurin, her voice sharp as a blade.
"You knew this would happen. You've been a step ahead since the moment we met. What are you, Crimson?"
Damien growled, fire burning hotter, almost turning on Yurin instead of the Guardians.
"Answer her. Now."
Clara clutched her scripts, her face pale, almost pleading. "Yurin… please tell me you're not…"
Yurin tilted his head, eyes glinting crimson in the broken light.
"Not what?"
The Guardians pressed closer, circling them, blades glinting with crimson firelight. The whispers became screams.
"ARCHITECT."
Evelyn's chains lashed, Damien's fists burned, Clara's scripts glowed—
But Yurin Crimson only stepped forward, calm in the storm.
He raised his hand, touching the nearest Guardian's cracked face.
"Strip."
The Guardian shattered—
and dozens of human faces screamed inside its fragments.
The truth wasn't one person. It was many. Dozens swallowed into one mask.
Clara staggered back, horrified. "They're not just one… they're everyone who vanished from the city…"
Damien's flames flickered weakly, his voice choked. "…Gods…"
Evelyn's chains froze midair, her smirk gone for once. "…You're telling me the Veilborn aren't monsters. They're people wearing truth they can't survive."
Yurin simply smiled. His voice was calm, almost amused.
"Now you're starting to see. Masks protect. Truth consumes. You all begged for honesty… but honesty is cruelty."
The Guardians roared as one, charging all at once.
Damien raised his fists. Evelyn her chains. Clara her scripts.
But Yurin Crimson—
laughed.
The crimson sky split open, wider than ever, and something beyond even the Guardians began to stir.
A colossal shadow loomed in the horizon, its mask covering the entire sky.
And this time, the voice wasn't whispering. It was thundering.
"ARCHITECT. RETURN."
Yurin's smile widened into something sharp, something predatory.
"Finally."
[Chapter Five — End]