Lumen159
They say a disciple should never fall in love with their master.
Respect them.
Trust them.
Follow them.
But never love them.
For Sam, that rule was broken the moment he looked into the golden eyes of the woman he admired more than anyone else-his shīfu.
She was his mentor. His greatest inspiration. The one who taught him to wield his spear, to protect others, and to stand against the horrors of the Hollows.
She could never be anything more.
Then she betrayed him.
When they were sent on a mission by Mayor Mayflower to investigate Lemnian Hollow, she left him behind to die.
The woman he loved...
The woman he trusted...
The woman he would have given his life for...
Walked away.
Now living in New Eridu, Sam carries the scars of that betrayal while taking on dangerous Hollow commissions alongside proxies like Wise and Belle, whose own ties to the Hollows begin to intertwine with his search for answers.
With powerful Ethereals emerging, forgotten secrets surfacing, and old bonds refusing to stay buried, he finds himself on a path that leads back to the one person he never wanted to see again.
But some questions refuse to stay unanswered.
Why did she abandon her him.
And if she truly never cared...
In a city where trust can be more dangerous than any Hollow, Sam must decide whether to seek revenge, search for the truth, or risk giving his heart to the woman who broke it.
Because sometimes the deepest wound isn't the one that nearly killed you.
It's the one left by the person you loved most.