“They tried to rip the bond out of you,” Minji said quietly. “It burned through half the ritual circle instead.”
Yuna nodded.
“It was like the magic refused to obey. Like it recognized you… as his.”
The silence that followed was thick.
I didn’t deny it.
Because there was no denying it anymore.
Minji reached into her boot — I didn’t know how it hadn’t been confiscated — and pulled out a tiny glass charm. It shimmered like moonlight on water.
“I was going to give this to you years ago,” she said. “In case… the Guild ever did something like this.”
Yuna reached into her pocket and pulled out a cracked, silver ring.
“And I stole this from the Guild’s reliquary. Guess I always knew they were full of shit.”
“What are these?” I whispered.
Minji reached for my hand.
“A vow. A binding. Sisters born of shadow. We protect each other — blood or not.”
Yuna slid the ring onto my finger.
“You’re stuck with us now, Seo.”
I didn’t cry. But my throat clenched, and for the first time since everything fell apart… I felt safe. For this meant their undying loyalty to me and me alone.
They called me a traitor. But in the dark, I found my truest loyalty. And when I rise again… I won’t rise alone.
They called me a traitor.But in the dark, I found my truest loyalty.And when I rise again… I won’t rise alone.
Rheon
The Bond Burns Red
The fire came first. It roared beneath my skin like a sleeping beast stirred too soon, curling through my veins, licking the edge of my vision until all I could see was flame.
I stumbled back from the mirror pool in the temple’s ruins — clutching my chest, where the bond mark had lain dormant for days.
Now it was blazing.
Alive.
And screaming her name.
Seori.
“Rheon!”
Taeyang's voice thundered from behind, but I couldn’t answer. I was kneeling on cracked stone, sweat pouring down my back as my breath came in ragged gasps.
The bond pulsed. Not gently. Not with longing. It pulsed withpanic.
Agony.
