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Desperation.
Desperation wasn't just a feeling. It was a storm. It howled through Seo Yul's mind, tore through his breath, and thudded like a war drum in his chest as he ran deeper into the forest. The cold air sliced into his lungs, yet he didn't stop.
He couldn't.
Leaves cracked beneath his shoes. The branches above clawed at the fading light like skeletal fingers. Shadows bled into one another, yet he kept going—driven by a name he could no longer say without flinching.
Na-ra.
He had to find her.
Hours had blurred into a fevered chase, the forest offering nothing but silence and shadows. The weight of failure dragged behind him like chains. If only he had walked her home──If only he hadn't let her go alone. Every scenario played again and again, cruel reels of what-ifs.But none trickled past the truth.
He didn't hear the footsteps behind him. Didn't hear his name being called. Not until a firm hand grabbed his shoulder.
"Yul-ah,"
Seo Yul jerked around, his breath catching at the familiar voice."Dang-gu..." he exhaled, eyes wild. " What about Uk? Is he—?"
Park Dang-gu slowed as he approached, his chest heaving, but it wasn't the running that left him breathless. It was the look on Seo Yul's face—haunted, desperate. He'd never seen him like this before.
" Uk's safe," Dang-gu answered quickly, placing a hand on Yul's arm." Master Heo removed the poison. He opened Uk's gate of energy—he's stable now."
Relief barely flickered across Seo Yul's face before he shook his head and started forward again." Good. Then I need to—"
"Yul-ah, wait." Dang-gu's voice lowered, concern threading through it." You look like you're about to collapse. At least catch your breath, I will—"
" I can't stop."Seo Yul snapped, more to himself than to Dang-gu." I need to find her."
And then, as if the forest had heard his plea, the air cracked.
A dull roar echoed from beyond the trees—followed by an eruption of flames.
The sky lit up. Orange and red devoured the horizon like a beast awakened. The fire licked the heavens, burning through the shadows like they were made of paper. The fire erupted far beyond the treeline, not a flicker but a towering inferno, blooming like a monstrous flower. The forest groaned under the weight of its heat as flames devoured everything in their path, clawing skyward as the light swallowed the shadow.
