Light swallowed everything—gold, silver, and shadow crashing together until Ara couldn't tell where she ended and the Seal's power began. The valley's chamber shattered around them, collapsing into a spiraling void of fractured memories and ancient energy.
Ara's body felt weightless one moment—
and crushed beneath invisible pressure the next.
"Ara!"
Kang Eun-woo's voice pierced the roar, raw and desperate.
She reached for him—
But another hand seized her wrist.
Cold. Strong. Familiar.
Jin Ha-ran.
"Ara, focus on me," he demanded, wings flaring as he tried to stabilize the falling shards of energy. "Don't let the Seal pull you under!"
The Seal flared brighter, golden light lashing outward like whips.
[SEAL CRITICAL OVERLOAD]
[AURA COLLISION: PROTECTOR vs FALLEN]
[STABILITY: 19%]
Ara cried out as the force slammed into her chest.
"I—I can't—!"
"You can."
Ha-ran's voice dropped into a deep, resonant command.
"You must."
"Let her go."
Eun-woo materialized beside them in a burst of silver light, grabbing Ara's other hand, anchoring her.
The moment both of them touched her—
Every emotion she'd suppressed erupted.
Fear.
Attraction.
Confusion.
The echo of past bearers' memories.
The strange, magnetic pull toward Ha-ran.
The steady calm she always felt near Eun-woo.
The pressure of a destiny she never asked for.
Her heart twisted painfully.
And the Seal reacted.
---
The Seal Chooses Conflict
A pulse shot through the space—golden, violent.
Ha-ran staggered back, hissing as golden sparks burned across his arm.
Eun-woo shielded Ara, silver aura expanding in protective layers.
"What happened?" Ara gasped.
Ha-ran wiped his burned skin, eyes glowing with frustration. "The Seal rejected the fusion of our auras." He glared at Eun-woo. "Her bond with the Protector interferes."
"It's protecting her," Eun-woo snapped.
Ha-ran's wings twitched. "No. It's confused. You've filled her head with your restraint and fear."
"As opposed to your manipulation?"
Ha-ran's smile was sharp. "I don't hide what I want."
Ara's breath stuttered.
"What… do you want?" she whispered before she could stop herself.
Both men froze.
Eun-woo's hand tightened around her arm.
Ha-ran's eyes darkened—softening and burning at the same time.
"I want," Ha-ran said slowly, "what the Seal has denied me for a century."
He took a step toward her.
"You."
Ara's heart lurched.
The Seal burned in response—conflicted, trembling, unstable.
Eun-woo immediately stepped in front of her, voice low and deadly. "Ara is not an object for you to claim."
Ha-ran's expression hardened. "Everything you protect, I desire. That has always been our curse, Protector."
The air crackled, reality fracturing again around them.
---
Thrown Into the Rift
The valley rejected their clashing auras.
A violent tremor ripped through the chamber remnants, and a fissure of pure light opened beneath them. Ara screamed as the ground vanished, pulling them into a spiraling void of white and gold.
Eun-woo caught her around the waist.
Ha-ran seized her wrist again, refusing to let go.
"Let go of her!" Eun-woo shouted.
"No." Ha-ran's wings beat hard, trying to steady their fall. "If she goes alone, the Seal will consume her!"
Energy surged, brighter and brighter—
The system flickered wildly:
[EMERGENCY SEAL MODE INITIATED]
[SEARCHING FOR SAFE ANCHOR POINT]
[WARNING: MULTIPLE AURAS ATTACHED TO BEARER]
Ara's vision blurred.
The world collapsed into streaks of light—
And suddenly, they weren't falling anymore.
They slammed onto solid ground.
Ara gasped, air rushing painfully into her lungs. The Seal dimmed, flickering but no longer exploding.
Eun-woo released her, scanning their surroundings in shock.
Ha-ran rose to his feet, wings folding behind him, expression unreadable.
Ara looked around—
And froze.
They stood in a snow-covered courtyard.
Silent. Ancient.
Surrounded by decayed stone lanterns and tattered banners.
At the center of the courtyard stood a single shrine made of black stone.
Both men stiffened at the same time.
"Ara…" Eun-woo whispered. "This place is forbidden."
Ha-ran's eyes narrowed. "The Seal didn't malfunction."
He stepped forward, voice dropping into something dark and knowing.
"It brought us to the Shrine of Broken Oaths."
Ara swallowed hard.
"What is this place?"
Ha-ran turned his crimson gaze to her.
"This," he said quietly, "is where the first bond between Protector, Sealed One, and Fallen was shattered."
A chill pierced Ara's spine.
Eun-woo closed his eyes briefly, pain flickering across his face.
"Ara… this is where everything between us—our lines, our destinies—first diverged."
Ara's voice trembled.
"Why would the Seal bring us here?"
Ha-ran took a slow breath.
"Because, Ara…
your destiny is tied to both of us."
The Seal pulsed once—deep and heavy—confirming it.